1
as in nightmare
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness
it's torture for me to see you so unhappy
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2
as in agony
a state of great suffering of body or mind
spent an afternoon in torture waiting to hear whether her brother had made it home safely
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1
as in to plague
to cause persistent suffering to
the neighbor's dog constantly tortures our cat, barking at him and chasing him down the street
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2
as in to distort
to twist (something) out of a natural or normal shape or condition
tortured her naturally straight hair into curls
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of torture
Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 22 Apr. 2025
Joel certainly gets hit with a Good Friday level of torture.
—Noel Murray, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
The episode continues the momentum with an extended stalker-vision first-person shot, as an unseen person creeps inexorably into an unidentified home at night, eventually revealing the Empire ghoul who tortured our gal Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona) last season.
—Jesse Hassenger, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torture
Noun
If the Trump regime can abduct a permanent resident of the United States and send him to a torture prison in El Salvador, without any criminal charges, no American is safe.
—Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 22 Apr. 2025
Joel certainly gets hit with a Good Friday level of torture.
—Noel Murray, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Verb
At the conclusion of Season 1, Bix is saved by Cassian after being tortured by Imperial Security Bureau Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) to secure information.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
The episode continues the momentum with an extended stalker-vision first-person shot, as an unseen person creeps inexorably into an unidentified home at night, eventually revealing the Empire ghoul who tortured our gal Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona) last season.
—Jesse Hassenger, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torture
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torture
Noun
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Playing one-on-one with Kobe Bryant was a hooper’s dream while growing up, but that quickly turned into a nightmare for Bow Wow, who got shut out 10-0 when facing the Mamba Mentality.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
1 May 2025
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For this series, Dhruv Khullar reports on the effects of the cancellation of a life-changing diabetes trial; Grace Byron writes about the bureaucratic nightmare of being trans in this moment; Charles Bethea covers the potential impacts of tariffs on the whiskey industry; and there’s more to come.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Ellie is stricken with agony, her reaction almost feral.—
Noel Murray,
New York Times,
21 Apr. 2025
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The agony of not knowing was heartbreakingly illustrated by the plight of Oscar Johnson, of St. Charles.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2025
Verb
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But the final 22 minutes of Game 5 demonstrated the same weaknesses that plagued Orlando for the entire season and throughout the playoff series.—
Josh Robbins,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2025
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But this preoccupation may have been a way to offset the general malaise that plagued her.—
Elizabeth Djinis,
Smithsonian Magazine,
28 Apr. 2025
Verb
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What’s reflected may still be distorted, but at least the mirror is now a little less foggy.—
Diana Spehar,
Forbes.com,
1 May 2025
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By distorting Judaism to minimize, or even erase, the Jewish connection to Israel, JVP seeks to undermine one of the most sacred tenets of our faith and identity.—
Chai Posner,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Kennedy described addiction as both a source of misery and a symptom of deeper pain, drawing from his own experience of trying to fill an emotional void with drugs.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Apr. 2025
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Now, though, The Last of Us is as blinded as Ellie is by misery.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
21 Apr. 2025
Noun
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On Tuesday, April 29, Patrick Cooper filed a lawsuit against Tisci, 50, claiming assault, battery, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and violations of New York State’s Gender-Motivated Violence Act.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
2 May 2025
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The letter noted that Connelly allowed this to carry on as West showed symptoms of neurological and behavioral distress.—
Kevin Dolak,
HollywoodReporter,
1 May 2025
Verb
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In a video posted to his Truth Social platform in December 2023, Trump accused the FBI and DOJ of sending undercover spies to churches to persecute people of faith.—
Ross Rosenfeld,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Apr. 2025
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The statement concluded with an expression of solidarity with Christians who are persecuted.—
Chloe Breyer,
New York Daily News,
21 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Because of this close bond, Ung said raising prices is a torment.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
21 Apr. 2025
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Seven people pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a long list of charges in the killing of Sam Nordquist, a Black transgender man who was allegedly held captive and tortured in an upstate New York hotel room for more than a month before succumbing to his torment.—
Matt Lavietes,
NBC News,
11 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Torture.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torture. Accessed 8 May. 2025.
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