as in tease
a person who causes repeated emotional pain, distress, or annoyance to another
a sadistic torturer of men he regarded as weak, the drillmaster really had it in for one recruit
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Recent Examples of torturer
It might have been produced, and not merely set, in a torturer’s basement.
—
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2025
Simply the possibility of taking some kind of revenge on the man who may or may not have been their torturer suddenly becomes an existential fact each person must confront in his or her own way.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
For decades, generals, coup-plotters, and torturers walked free under the shield of amnesty laws passed after the country’s 21-year dictatorship.
—Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
Is the man actually his torturer?
—Zach Dennis, Charlotte Observer, 9 Sep. 2025
Each regime, from the Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic, claimed to uphold human rights and castigated its predecessors as torturers, only to ratchet up the incarceration of political opponents.
—Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2025
Simply the possibility of taking some kind of revenge on the man who may or may not have been their torturer suddenly becomes an existential fact each person must confront in his or her own way.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2025
For decades, generals, coup-plotters, and torturers walked free under the shield of amnesty laws passed after the country’s 21-year dictatorship.
—Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025
Is the man actually his torturer?
—Zach Dennis, Charlotte Observer, 9 Sep. 2025
Each regime, from the Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic, claimed to uphold human rights and castigated its predecessors as torturers, only to ratchet up the incarceration of political opponents.
—Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torturer
Noun
-
The follow-up tease showed someone holding a bunch of wires, insinuating that her costume likely has some animatronics involved.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Nov. 2025
-
The label on this one is like a tease.—
Jolene Thym,
Mercury News,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The mind could wander briefly about the Giants riding a two-game winning streak into a Thursday Night Football matchup with the Eagles, equipped to knock off their tormentors who suddenly look vulnerable.—
Dan Duggan,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
-
On the Met’s stage, the writer — called, say, Jamal Khashoggi — would be sung by a heroic tenor, his tormentor by a demonic baritone.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The documentary tells the true story of a teenage couple relentlessly bullied via text by an anonymous harasser.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Amish are part of the wider Anabaptist movement, which puts heavy emphasis on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, containing some of his most radical and counter-cultural sayings — to love enemies, live simply, bless persecutors, turn the other cheek and to endure sufferings joyfully.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
30 Oct. 2025
-
The grounds once housed the elaborate palace of first century Roman Emperor Domitian, a persecutor of Christians.—
Angie Leventis Lourgos,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Even if online shaming continues, this accountability will make sure that the victimizer will face social consequences as well.—
Eli Thompson,
Rolling Stone,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
These programs harvest passwords, browser data and other sensitive information, sending it back to the attacker's command and control servers.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
3 Nov. 2025
-
There is no evidence of an attacker at the University of Virginia after a gunman was reported near a library on campus, according to an emergency alert from campus police.—
N'dea Yancey-Bragg,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Torturer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torturer. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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