torch song

American  

noun

1. a popular song concerned with unhappiness or failure in love.

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torch song British  

noun

1. a sentimental or romantic popular song, usually sung by a woman

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Other Word Forms

• torch singer
  noun

Etymology

Origin of torch song

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

torch song

The LP’s second ballad is a torch song, “We’re All Alone.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026

There’s also an early version of “We Three,” the torch song she wrote with Tom Verlaine, which would later make it onto “Easter.”

From Salon ● Dec. 9, 2025

Haigh’s work does for me what the filmmaker says a torch song or a tearjerker does for him: “That is the thing that makes me feel less alone,” he says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 20, 2023

The duo stockpiled a few hundred songs and whittled them down to the final 11, from the anguished torch song “Never Not Love You” to the encouraging “Get Up Kid.”

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 14, 2023

Much like “Estamos Bien” before it, “El Apagón” is a torch song that captures both the beauty and tragedy of Puerto Rican life.

From New York Times ● May 6, 2022