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Glite Dictionary
rending

rending

7.9
A loud, sharp sound like something being torn apart
  • adjective
  • /ˈrɛndɪŋ/
  • Literature
translation icon : desgarrador
  • The rending scream of the victim echoed through the alley, chilling everyone nearby.

And I recognize the profundity of that and the rending quality of that.

Examples

  • There is also the more heart rending question of what is the point of having empathy?

  • There is also the more heart rending question of what is the point of having empathy?

  • And you know, we intended this to be a heart rending moment, but we were still in this big Bigfoot movie.

  • And I recognize the profundity of that and the rending quality of that.

    Big Think

  • The honourable lady raises a point that is so heart rending and important, as is the protection of care home residents from this disease.

  • This fire, this conflagration, is in Morais and Pato's writing, that of the resistant rending language of love.

  • [MUSIC SWELLS TO A HEART-RENDING CRESCENDO]

    Mercy (2021)

  • As the earthquake struck, there was a rending noise like the splitting of the earth beneath our feet.

  • The rending sound of trees snapping in the storm filled the air with a sense of impending danger.

Synonyms

shattering
vsrending
1 5.6

A very loud, forceful noise that could break things

is focused on tearing sounds rather than general loud breaking events
ripping
vsrending
7.5

Making a loud tearing sound like cloth or wood

is more suggestive and general rather than naming specific torn materials
splitting
vsrending
6.5

A very loud sharp sound that seems like something being torn apart

is more about suggestion of tearing rather than the exact action itself

How Violent

shattering
1 5.6
rending
  • Literature
7.9
harsh
47 3.9

Surface Forms

rending positive

Morphology

rending = rend (transparent) = rend + ing

The adjective is formed directly from the verb 'rend' with the productive suffix '-ing', and its meaning is directly inferable from 'rend'.

Etymology

Rending comes from the old English verb rend, which means 'to tear' or pull apart and is the same root you see in rent when something is 'torn'. So a rending sound is like a violent tearing or splitting, which is why we use the word for harsh, breaking noises.