tor·ment
ˈtȯr-ˌment 
1
: extreme pain or anguish of body or mind : agony
She wrung her hands piteously together, looking like a soul in torment.—
Lucy Maud Montgomery
Lucy Maud Montgomery2
: a source of vexation or pain
Love is a delight; but hate a torment.—Herman Melville
Herman Melville… the twin torments of his probable manic depression and chronic stomach pains.—Neal Karlen
Neal Karlen3
: the infliction of torture (as by rack or wheel)
tor·ment
tȯr-ˈment
ˈtȯr-ˌment
ˈtȯr-ˌment
tormented; tormenting; torments
1
: to cause severe usually persistent or recurrent distress of body or mind to
cattle tormented by flies
tormented by doubt
She liked me, but she laughed at me, and tormented me …—Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
tormented
adjective
… Emily—who is easily one of the most tormented characters of the show …
—Rowan Born
Rowan Born
The Witch makes the mundane sinister, from the tormented shapes of the corn husks in the field to the weird glow of pewter by candlelight.
—Katy Waldman
Katy Waldman
Examples of torment in a Sentence
Noun
No one could understand his inner torment.
After years of torment, she left her husband.
The mosquitoes were a constant torment.
Verb
Not knowing where she was tormented him.
he was tormented by nightmares about the accident
Recent Examples on the Web
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Depp will play the titular role of Ebenezer Scrooge, a misanthropic and miserly businessman in 19th century London who is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future in an effort to save himself from an afterlife of torment.
—Adam B. Vary, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
Deepa Bharath, Twin Cities, 20 Oct. 2025
The loss continues to torment Amelia, and 6-year-old Samuel (Noah Wiseman) turns to a children's pop-up book, Mister Babadook, for macabre comfort.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torment
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Noun
Jeremy Allen White, who always seems to do inchoate torment so well, makes a fine Springsteen.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Depp will play the titular role of Ebenezer Scrooge, a misanthropic and miserly businessman in 19th century London who is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future in an effort to save himself from an afterlife of torment.
—Adam B. Vary, Variety, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
In southern India, Diwali celebrates the victory of Lord Krishna’s destruction of the demon Naraka who is said to have imprisoned women and tormented his subjects.
—Deepa Bharath, Twin Cities, 20 Oct. 2025
The loss continues to torment Amelia, and 6-year-old Samuel (Noah Wiseman) turns to a children's pop-up book, Mister Babadook, for macabre comfort.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torment
Cite this Entry
“Torment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/torment. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
torment
1 of 2 noun
tor·ment
ˈtȯr-ˌment
1
: extreme pain or distress of body or mind
2
: a cause of suffering in mind or body
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