Is there any difference in usage of 'pull down' and 'tear down'? Thank you :)
Can I use 'tear down' instead of 'pull down' in the sentence stated below? Will it change the meaning? If these phrasal verbs are not complete synonyms, what is the difference between the usage of phrasal verbs 'pull down' and 'tear down'?

They are planning to PULL DOWN the old school and build a new one.

Question

Is there any difference in usage of 'pull down' and 'tear down'? Thank you :)
Can I use 'tear down' instead of 'pull down' in the sentence stated below? Will it change the meaning? If these phrasal verbs are not complete synonyms, what is the difference between the usage of phrasal verbs 'pull down' and 'tear down'?

They are planning to PULL DOWN the old school and build a new one.

Answer

They are very similar in this case, but often 'tear down' implies more violence.

"The statue of Saddam Hussein was torn down".

If you'd like to make these kinds of distinctions usable in your everyday English, maybe book a lesson and we'll practise them together.

Answer

You can pull down something but you can still reassemble it to its original state.

Whereas to tear down means, that the debris, after you have teared it down, is thrown away.

Cheeers

Answer

They are essentially the same thing. But, tear down is a more aggressive word.

Answers · 6

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