pick apart
phrasal verb
picked apart; picking apart; picks apart
chiefly US
: to say all of the things that are bad or wrong about (someone or something) : to criticize (a person or thing) in a very detailed and usually unkind way
You can expect political analysts to pick apart the governor's speech.
The film's critics picked his performance apart.
Examples of pick apart in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
They have been ruthlessly picked apart in 4-0 and 5-2 defeats this season against Barcelona, who consistently found a player behind the midfield four.
—
Mark Carey, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025
And Minecraft fans are not picking apart the quality of greenscreens in a trailer.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Contrast that with the way Salah in particular picked apart the City defence.
—Oliver Kay, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025
Unlike, say, The Leftovers or The OA—thrillingly unfathomable shows awash in details that were picked apart on Reddit—Severance didn’t reward its viewers with emotional catharsis, that big swooshy mess of pure feeling.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 17 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pick apart
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Mark Carey, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025
And Minecraft fans are not picking apart the quality of greenscreens in a trailer.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Contrast that with the way Salah in particular picked apart the City defence.
—Oliver Kay, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025
Unlike, say, The Leftovers or The OA—thrillingly unfathomable shows awash in details that were picked apart on Reddit—Severance didn’t reward its viewers with emotional catharsis, that big swooshy mess of pure feeling.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 17 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pick apart
Cite this Entry
“Pick apart.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pick%20apart. Accessed 12 Apr. 2025.
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