torment
Americanverb (used with object)
-
torments,
present (3rd person singular)
-
tormented,
past participle, past
-
tormenting
present participle
-
to afflict with great bodily or mental suffering; pain.
to be tormented with violent headaches.
- Antonyms:
- please
-
to worry or annoy excessively.
to torment one with questions.
-
to throw into commotion; stir up; disturb.
noun
-
torments
plural
-
a state of great bodily or mental suffering; agony; misery.
-
something that causes great bodily or mental pain or suffering.
-
a source of much trouble, worry, or annoyance.
-
an instrument of torture, as the rack or the thumbscrew.
-
the infliction of torture by means of such an instrument or the torture so inflicted.
verb
-
to afflict with great pain, suffering, or anguish; torture
-
to tease or pester in an annoying way
stop tormenting the dog
noun
-
physical or mental pain
-
a source of pain, worry, annoyance, etc
-
archaic an instrument of torture
-
archaic the infliction of torture
Synonym Usage
Torment , rack , torture suggest causing great physical or mental pain, suffering, or harassment. To torment is to afflict or harass as by incessant repetition of vexations or annoyances: to be tormented by doubts. To rack is to affect with such pain as that suffered by one stretched on a rack; to concentrate with painful effort: to rack one's brains. To torture is to afflict with acute and more or less protracted suffering: to torture one by keeping one in suspense.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
tormentingnessnoun
-
tormentedadjective
-
tormentingadjective
-
untormentedadjective
-
untormentingadjective
-
tormentedlyadverb
-
tormentinglyadverb
-
untormentinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
tormentsimple
-
tormentssimple
-
have tormentedperfect
-
has tormentedperfect
-
am tormentingprogressive
-
are tormentingprogressive
-
is tormentingprogressive
-
have been tormentingperfect progressive
-
has been tormentingperfect progressive
Past
-
tormentedsimple
-
had tormentedperfect
-
was tormentingprogressive
-
were tormentingprogressive
-
had been tormentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of torment
First recorded in 1250–1300; (noun) Middle English, from Old French, from Latin tormentum “rope, catapult, torture,” from unattested tork w -ment- ( see torque, -ment); (verb) Middle English tormenten, from Old French tormenter, derivative of torment (compare Late Latin tormentāre )
Explanation
By repeatedly trying to make someone miserable you torment them. The noun torment is the result of the verb torment. After stealing the old lady's purse, you might expect to be tormented by many sleepless nights. Those nights without sleep will torment (tor-MENT) you. They are your torment (TOR-ment). Perhaps you shouldn't have done that. You'll doubtless notice the relationship between torture and torment. But the subtle difference between them is that to torment someone is to torture them repeatedly. Often this is used metaphorically. For example, calling someone over and over to demand payment isn't actually torture, but it's certainly a way to torment them.
Vocabulary lists containing torment
Number the Stars
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Achievement First 5th Grade IA 1 Words
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
That Hurts! Synonyms for "Pain"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As if Wendy’s hands, heart and day planner weren’t full enough, a panicky Jack determines to win her back, much to her torment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
He said the families of those killed and injured will be experiencing "torment".
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
A strikingly potent Frida, Isabel Leonard used her velvety mezzo to find the drama of the artist’s remembered torment as well as the undulating sensuality of her love for painting and colors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
They added that since the fatal crash, they "have lived every day since then in torment — without peace, without answers, and without accountability".
From BBC ● May 1, 2026
“She’ll be a soul in torment, carried off just when she was fixing to lock us up in that schoolhouse for another year.”
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
The enduring myth of the tower as a site of cruel torments has a lot to do with Ainsworth’s melodramatic novel, which adapts the true story of Lady Jane Grey, the “nine days queen.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
After spending time in the divine abyss, we’re back in reality, ripped from the stratosphere and placed into one of life’s most mundane torments: the hygienist’s chair.
From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2025
But like many of those who saved lives that day, she still torments herself.
From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2025
Solange’s disgusting behavior as she torments her housemates is what the Eggers seem to be getting at.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2024
Despite her torments, she was always tender to her girl, even if her big toothless smile fell like an ax the moment Lovey turned away.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
About a month after that, the financier, tormented by fears of further investigation, died of apoplexy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
Omar Marmoush: Debutant was quickly parachuted into starting line-up, having tormented Newcastle so many times before with Manchester City.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
In painful detail, she described the splitting headaches, body aches, chills, high fevers and hallucinations that had tormented her for days.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
The rearrangement allowed Shankly to recall Toshack, who had been left out of the initial match, and he and Keegan tormented the Germans in a 3-0 victory, Liverpool subsequently winning 3-2 on aggregate.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
He was a smart, sensitive child who was tormented by what he'd done and what he'd been through.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
There’s no honor in tormenting a devoted fan base that doesn’t need any more suffering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
"It's like he's mocking and tormenting us," he said.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Fofana and Allan Saint-Maximin, on in place of Edouard and Said, continued the tormenting of PFC as they combined to add two goals in stoppage time.
From Barron's ● Feb. 14, 2026
“I know he is really good at that kind of stuff from playing against him and watching him do it and tormenting my team back in the day,” Stafford said, laughing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2025
Smith put Manning out of his mind and went back to tormenting the dockers.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
