Semantics

tear
У неё слёзы брызнули из глаз. Tears gushed from her eyes.
teardrop
На ресницах мальчика нависли две крупные слезы. Two large teardrops hung from the little boy's lashes.
This entry is concerned with the use of the word слеза "teardrop," plural слёзы; the plural form usually refers to tears, though it may also mean "teardrops," as in крупные слёзы "large teardrops." This word refers normally to humans, although слеза in the sense of "teardrop" can refer to animals as well.