torment

From Middle English torment, from Old French torment, from Latin tormentum (“something operated by twisting”), from torquere (“to twist”).

• (noun) IPA^(key): /ˈtɔː(ɹ)mɛnt/, /ˈtɔː(ɹ)mənt/

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• (verb) IPA^(key): /tɔː(ɹ)ˈmɛnt/

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  • Rhymes: -ɛnt

torment (countable and uncountable, plural torments)

1. (obsolete) A catapult or other kind of war-engine.
2. Torture, originally as inflicted by an instrument of torture.
3. Any extreme pain, anguish or misery, either physical or mental.

   He was bitter from the torments of the divorce.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 4:24:

     They brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments.

• See also Thesaurus:pain

• tormentous

torment (third-person singular simple present torments, present participle tormenting, simple past and past participle tormented)

1. (transitive) To cause severe suffering to (stronger than to vex but weaker than to torture.)

   The child tormented the flies by pulling their wings off.

   • 2013 September 22, Phil McNulty, “Man City 4-1 Man Utd”, in BBC Sport‎:

     Moyes, who never won a derby at Liverpool in 11 years as Everton manager, did not find the Etihad any more forgiving as City picked United apart in midfield, where Toure looked in a different class to United's £27.5m new boy Marouane Fellaini, and in defence as Aguero tormented Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand.

   • 1913, Lewis Spence, chapter V, in The Myths of Mexico and Peru‎:

     But the divine children were both noisy and mischievous. They tormented their venerable grandmother with their shrill uproar and tricky behaviour.

• tormentor

Borrowed from Old French torment, from Latin tormentum.

torment (plural torments)

1. torment (suffering, pain)

• English: torment

• tourment

From Old French torment, from Latin tormentum.

torment m (plural torments)

1. torment; suffering; anguish

• turment

From Latin tormentum.

torment oblique singular, m (oblique plural tormenz or tormentz, nominative singular tormenz or tormentz, nominative plural torment)

1. torture
   • 13th century, Unknown, La Vie de Saint Laurent, page 11, column 1, line 19:

     Saint Lorenz dit torment ne dot

     Saint Laurence says he doesn't fear torture

2. (figuratively, by extension) suffering; torment

• Middle English: torment (borrowing)
  • English: torment
• Middle French: torment, tourment
  • French: tourment

• Etymology and history of “tourment”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

From Latin tormentum.

torment m (nominative singular torments)

1. suffering; torment

• Occitan: torment