Adjacent Words

Torment definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

TOR'MENT, n. [L. tormentum.; torqueo, torno; Eng. tour; that is, from twisting, straining.]
1. Extreme pain; anguish; the utmost degree of misery, either of body or mind.
The more I see
Pleasure about me, so much I feel
Torment within me.
Lest they also come into this place of torment. Luke 16. Revelation 9. 14.
2. That which gives pain, vexation or misery.
They brought to him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments. Matthew 4.
3. An engine for casting stones.
TORMENT', v.t. To put to extreme pain or anguish; to inflict excruciating pain and misery, either of body or mind.
Art thou come hither to torment us before the time? Matthew 8.
He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone. Revelation 14.
1. To pain; to distress.
Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. Matthew 8.
2. To tease; to vex; to harass; as, to be tormented with importunities, or with petty annoyances.
3. To put into great agitation.
They soaring on main wing
Tormented all the air. [Unusual.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: unbearable physical pain [syn: torture, torment]
2: extreme mental distress [syn: anguish, torment, torture]
3: intense feelings of suffering; acute mental or physical pain; "an agony of doubt"; "the torments of the damned" [syn: agony, torment, torture]
4: a feeling of intense annoyance caused by being tormented; "so great was his harassment that he wanted to destroy his tormentors" [syn: harassment, torment]
5: a severe affliction [syn: curse, torment]
6: the act of harassing someone [syn: badgering, worrying, torment, bedevilment] v
1: torment emotionally or mentally [syn: torment, torture, excruciate, rack]
2: treat cruelly; "The children tormented the stuttering teacher" [syn: torment, rag, bedevil, crucify, dun, frustrate]
3: subject to torture; "The sinners will be tormented in Hell, according to the Bible" [syn: torture, excruciate, torment]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French turment, torment, from Latin tormentum torture; akin to torqu?re to twist — more at torture Date: 14th century 1. the infliction of torture (as by rack or wheel) 2. extreme pain or anguish of body or mind ; agony 3. a source of vexation or pain II. transitive verb Date: 14th century 1. to cause severe usually persistent or recurrent distress of body or mind to <cattle tormented by flies> 2. distort, twist Synonyms: see afflict

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 severe physical or mental suffering (was in torment). 2 a cause of this. 3 archaic a torture. b an instrument of torture. --v.tr. 1 subject to torment (tormented with worry). 2 tease or worry excessively (enjoyed tormenting the teacher). Derivatives: tormentedly adv. tormentingly adv. tormentor n. Etymology: ME f. OF torment, tormenter f. L tormentum missile-engine f. torquere to twist

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Torment Tor*ment", v. t. [imp. & p. p. tormented; p. pr. & vb. n. tormenting.] [OF. tormenter, F. tourmenter.] 1. To put to extreme pain or anguish; to inflict excruciating misery upon, either of body or mind; to torture. `` Art thou come hither to torment us before our time? '' --Matt. viii. 29. 2. To pain; to distress; to afflict. Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. --Matt. viii. 6. 3. To tease; to vex; to harass; as, to be tormented with importunities, or with petty annoyances. [Colloq.] 4. To put into great agitation. [R.] ``[They], soaring on main wing, tormented all the air.'' --Milton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Torment Tor"ment, n. [OF. torment, F. tourment, fr. L. tormentum an engine for hurling missiles, an instrument of torture, a rack, torture, fr. torquere to turn, to twist, hurl. See Turture.] 1. (Mil. Antiq.) An engine for casting stones. [Obs.] --Sir T. Elyot. 2. Extreme pain; anguish; torture; the utmost degree of misery, either of body or mind. --Chaucer. The more I see Pleasures about me, so much more I feel Torment within me. --Milton. 3. That which gives pain, vexation, or misery. They brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments. --Matt. iv. 24.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(tormented) 1. Torment is extreme suffering, usually mental suffering. The torment of having her baby kidnapped is written all over her face. = anguish N-UNCOUNT 2. A torment is something that causes extreme suffering, usually mental suffering. Sooner or later most writers end up making books about the torments of being a writer... N-COUNT 3. If something torments you, it causes you extreme mental suffering. At times the memories returned to torment her... = torture VERB: V n 4. If you torment a person or animal, you annoy them in a playful, rather cruel way for your own amusement. My older brother and sister used to torment me by singing it to me. VERB: V n

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Gr. basanos (Matt. 4:24), the "touch-stone" of justice; hence inquisition by torture, and then any disease which racks and tortures the limbs.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. Anguish, agony, torture, rack, pang, extreme pain, excruciating pain, acute distress. II. v. a. 1. Torture, distress, agonize, rack, excruciate, pain extremely, put to the rack, put to torture, harass with anguish. 2. Pain, distress, afflict. 3. Tease, vex, plague, harass, worry, harry, badger, fret, irritate, nettle, provoke, tantalize, trouble, annoy.

Moby Thesaurus

abuse, afflict, affliction, aggravate, aggrieve, agonize, agonizingness, agony, ail, anguish, annoy, annoyance, annoyer, atrocious pain, badger, badgerer, bait, bane, be at, be the matter, bedevil, befoul, beset, bewitch, bite, blight, bloody, bother, break down, bring to tears, bristle, brown off, bug, bugbear, bully, bullyrag, burden, burn, burn up, calamity, chafe, chevy, chivy, claw, clawing, complicate matters, concern, condemn, confinement, convulse, corrupt, cruciation, crucifixion, crucify, crush, crushing burden, curse, cut, cut up, damage, death, defile, deprave, desolate, desolateness, desolation, despoil, destroy, destruction, devil, disadvantage, discommode, discompose, disease, dismemberment, disserve, distemper, distress, disturb, do a mischief, do evil, do ill, do wrong, do wrong by, dog, doom, draw tears, embitter, envenom, estrapade, evil, exasperate, excruciate, excruciatingness, excruciation, exercise, fash, fester, fret, fretting, gall, galleys, get, get into trouble, give pain, gnaw, grate, grievance, grieve, grind, gripe, harass, harasser, harassment, hard labor, harm, harrier, harrow, harry, haunt, heartbreak, heartsickness, heckle, heckler, hector, hell, hell upon earth, hex, holocaust, horror, hound, hunt, hurt, impair, impale, impalement, imprisonment, incarceration, inconvenience, infect, inflame, inflict pain, infliction, injure, inundate, irk, irritate, irritation, jailing, jinx, keelhauling, kill by inches, lacerate, laceration, lancinate, lancination, macerate, maltreat, martyr, martyrdom, martyrization, martyrize, menace, miff, misery, mistreat, molest, nag, needle, needling, nemesis, nettle, nightmare, nip, nudnik, nudzh, nuisance, open wound, oppress, ordeal, outrage, overwhelm, pain, painfulness, passion, peeve, penal servitude, perplex, persecute, persecution, persecutor, perturb, pest, pester, pesterer, pestilence, pick on, picketing, pierce, pinch, pique, plague, plaguer, play havoc with, play hob with, pluck the beard, poison, pollute, pother, prejudice, prick, prolong the agony, prostrate, provoke, punish, purgatory, pursue, put out, put to it, put to torture, puzzle, rack, railriding, rankle, rasp, ride, rile, rip, rock pile, roil, rub, ruffle, running sore, sadist, savage, scarify, scathe, scourge, smite, sorrow, stab, sting, strappado, suffering, taint, tar-and-feathering, tease, teaser, the gantlet, thorn, threaten, tormentingness, tormentor, torture, torturousness, trouble, try, try the patience, tweak, tweak the nose, twist, vex, vexation, victimize, violate, visitation, woe, worriedness, worries and cares, worriment, worry, worrying, wound, wreak havoc on, wretchedness, wring, wrong