transitive verb rent, rending
- to tear, pull, or rip with violence: with from, off, away, etc.
- to tear, pull apart, rip up, or split with violence [a tree rent by lightning]: often used figuratively [a roar rends the air]
- to tear (one's clothing) to show grief, anguish, etc.
Origin:
ME renden < OE rendan, akin to OFris renda < IE base *rendh-, to tear apart > rind, Sans randhram, fissure, split
intransitive verb
to tear; burst; split apart