torture

1 of 2

noun

tor·ture ˈtȯr-chər

: the infliction of intense pain (as from burning, crushing, or wounding) to punish, coerce, or afford sadistic pleasure

: something that causes agony or pain

: anguish of body or mind : agony

: distortion or overrefinement of a meaning or an argument : straining

torture

2 of 2

verb

tortured; torturing ˈtȯrch-riŋ

ˈtȯr-chə-

transitive verb

: to cause intense suffering to : torment

: to punish or coerce by inflicting excruciating pain

: to twist or wrench out of shape : distort, warp

torturer

ˈtȯr-chər-ər

noun

Choose the Right Synonym for torture

afflict, try, torment, torture, rack mean to inflict on a person something that is hard to bear.

afflict is a general term and applies to the causing of pain or suffering or of acute annoyance, embarrassment, or any distress.

ills that afflict the elderly

try suggests imposing something that strains the powers of endurance or of self-control.

children often try their parents' patience

torment suggests persecution or the repeated inflicting of suffering or annoyance.

a horse tormented by flies

torture adds the implication of causing unbearable pain or suffering.

tortured by a sense of guilt

rack stresses straining or wrenching.

a body racked by pain

Example Sentences

Noun Waiting is just torture for me. Listening to him can be torture. Verb The report revealed that prisoners had been repeatedly tortured. Don't torture yourself over the mistake.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

If ballet was all self-effacing torture, there would be no need to wrestle with it. —

Madison Mainwaring, The New Republic, 19 Apr. 2023 This will either be a Florida-Atlantic-to-the-Final-Four kind of surprise or, well, almost nightly torture. —

Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 15 Apr. 2023 President Bush refused to call waterboarding torture, but in April 2009 President Barack Obama did. —

Richard Sandomir, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2023 Saudi Arabia has been accused of wide-ranging human rights abuses, including politically motivated killings, torture, forced disappearances and inhumane treatment of prisoners. —

Richard Morin, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2023 Car bombings, assassinations, torture, and kidnapping became a part of daily life in Iraq for years. —

Mary Clare Jalonick, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Mar. 2023 Over the course of the trial Jews’ testimonies, extracted under torture, began to align with a narrative casting Simon as a martyr killed by Jews that was written and published a few days after Simon’s body had been found. —

Magda Teter, The New York Review of Books, 2 Mar. 2023 His right side becomes a sadist, obsessed with systems of torture; his left is now possessed by a sickly goodness and grace; both sides are in love with the same woman, Pamela. —

Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2023 They had both been strangled and investigators found signs of torture, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office. —

Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 14 Feb. 2023

Verb

In 1996, a man named Rodolfo Soler stood accused of rape and murder, and Melchor relates the townspeople’s vengeance — torturing him and burning him alive — in prose as cool as the events were grotesque. —

Mark Athitakis, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2023 The University of Texas Austin senior had been brutalized, tortured and dismembered at the hands of Adolfo Constanzo and his drug-smuggling cult. —

Taylor Pettaway, San Antonio Express-News, 14 Mar. 2023 He was abducted, tortured and murdered as part of a human sacrifice ritual by a Mexican cult. —

Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 13 Mar. 2023 Some investigations are focused on crimes committed in clandestine detention centers where hundreds of people were tortured and killed. —

Natalie Alcoba, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2023 Women who have protested the oppressive new rules face arrest and the possibility of being tortured and forcibly disappeared, according to a report from Amnesty International. —

Abc News, ABC News, 9 Mar. 2023 The killings have stirred uncomfortable memories in Saitama, which in recent years jailed a cat killer who tortured several animals and posted videos of his actions online. —

Junko Ogura, CNN, 3 Mar. 2023 In February 2020, Akbar called 911 to report that her neighbors had tortured and beaten both her and her daughter and then locked them in the bathroom for hours, according to the district attorney. —

Alexis Stevens, ajc, 21 Feb. 2023 Still, when an apparently innocent citizen like Nichols is tortured and executed by armed agents of the state, reform seems not only unambitious but inadequate. —

Paul Butler, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'torture.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French, from Old French, from Late Latin tortura, from Latin tortus, past participle of torquēre to twist; probably akin to Old High German drāhsil turner, Greek atraktos spindle

First Known Use

Noun

1540, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Verb

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of torture was in 1540

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Torture.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/torture. Accessed 4 Jun. 2023.

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Kids Definition

torture

1 of 2 noun

tor·ture ˈtȯr-chər

: distress of body or mind

: the causing of great pain especially to punish or to obtain a confession

torture

2 of 2 verb

tortured; torturing ˈtȯrch-(ə-)riŋ

: to cause great suffering to

: to punish or force someone to do or say something by causing great pain

torturer

ˈtȯr-chər-ər

noun

Etymology

Noun

from French torture "causing of intense pain or agony," from Latin tortura "act of twisting," from earlier tortus, past participle of torquēre "to twist" — related to distort, extort, retort