tear
n. countablen. a drop of salty liquid that comes from your eye when you cry or when your eyes are irritated.
n. a drop of clear salty liquid secreted from the lacrimal gland in the eye. Often associated with emotional states or physical irritation.
A single tear ran down her cheek as she said goodbye.
The strong smell of the chopped onions brought a tear to his eye before he could finish the meal.
While emotional tears are unique to humans, the physiological function of basal tears is to keep the cornea lubricated and protected from environmental debris.
From Middle English teren, from Old English teran (“to tear, lacerate”), from Proto-Germanic teraną (“to tear, tear apart, rip”), from Proto-Indo-European der- (“to tear, tear apart”). Cognate with Scots tere, teir, tair (“to rend, lacerate, wound, rip, tear out”), Dutch teren (“to eliminate, efface, live, survive by consumption”), German zehren (“to consume, misuse”), German zerren (“to tug, rip, tear”), Danish tære (“to consume”), Swedish tära (“to fret, consume, deplete, use up”), Icelandic tæra (“to clear, corrode”). Outside Germanic, cognate to Ancient Greek δέρω (dérō, “to skin”), Albanian ther (“to slay, skin, pierce”). Doublet of tire.
From Middle English teer (“tear”), from Old English tēar, from Proto-West Germanic tahr, from Proto-Germanic tahrą (“tear”), from Proto-Indo-European *dáḱru- (“tears”). Cognates include Old Norse tár (Danish tåre and Norwegian tåre), Old High German zahar (German Zähre), Gothic 𐍄𐌰𐌲𐍂 (tagr), Irish deoir and Latin lacrima.
Commonly used in the plural when referring to the act of crying.
She was in tearShe was in tearsWhen describing someone crying, the plural form 'tears' is required in this idiomatic expression.