Rend
WordNet
verb
(1) Tear or be torn violently
"The curtain ripped from top to bottom"
"Pull the cooked chicken into strips"
WiktionaryText
Etymology
Cf. Old Norse or ( > Danish ).
Verb
- To separate into parts with force or sudden violence; to tear asunder; to split; to burst
- Powder rends a rock in blasting.
- Lightning rends an oak.
- To part or tear off forcibly; to take away by force.
- To be rent or torn; to become parted; to separate; to split.
- Relationships may rend if tempers flare.
- Rending of garments for shiva is a Jewish tradition.