|
| tor·ture [ táwrchər ] |
transitive verb (past and past participle tor·tured, present participle tor·tur·ing, 3rd person present singular tor·tures) |
|
| Definition: |
| |
1. inflict pain on somebody: to inflict extreme pain or physical punishment on somebody
|
2. cause somebody anguish: to cause somebody mental or physical anguish
  This headache is torturing me.
|
3. distort something: to twist or distort something into an unnatural form
|
noun |
|
| Definition: |
| |
1. inflicting of pain: infliction of severe physical pain on somebody, e.g. as punishment or to persuade somebody to confess or recant something
|
2. methods of inflicting pain: the methods used to inflict physical pain on people
|
3. anguish: mental or physical anguish
|
| [Mid-16th century. Directly or via French< late Latin tortura< Latin tortus "twisted" < torquere "to twist"] |
|
| tor·tur·er noun |
| tor·tur·ing·ly adverb |
|
