torture
Part of speech: noun
verb
Morphological type: simple
Topics: BDSM
lifestyle
sexuality
Etymology: From Middle English torture, from Old French torture, from Late Latin tortūra (“a twisting, writhing, of bodily pain, a griping colic;” in Medieval Latin “pain inflicted by judicial or ecclesiastical authority as a means of persuasion, torture”), from Latin tortus (whence also tort), past participle of torquēre (“to twist”).
Inflected forms:
form: tortures
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: tortures
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: torturing
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: tortured
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: tortured
pos: verb
tags: past
Senses:
gloss: The infliction of severe pain or anguish, especially as an interrogation technique or punishment; (usually in the plural) a technique, method, or device which is designed to inflict such anguish.
pos: noun
tags: countable
uncountable
examples: People confess to anything under torture.
Using large dogs to attack bound, hand-cuffed prisoners is clearly torture.
What new tortures await me?
If Cheney calls it enhanced interrogation, he argues, this still doesn’t change the meaning of the word torture, which Cheney and the public know perfectly well. But cognitive linguists like Lakoff (1996) remind us that the public can be manipulated into believing that torture is “merely” an enhanced interrogation technique and thus does not protest.
Santorum, in a comment regarding Senator John McCain's repudiation of torture, stated, "He doesn't understand how enhanced interrogation works. I mean, you break somebody, and after they've broken they become cooperative" (Summers 2011).
gloss: The infliction of severe pain or anguish, especially as an interrogation technique or punishment; (usually in the plural) a technique, method, or device which is designed to inflict such anguish.
pos: noun
tags: countable
in-compounds
uncountable
examples: cock and ball torture
tickle torture
gloss: Severe pain or anguish, of mind or body.
pos: noun
tags: countable
uncountable
gloss: An unpleasant sensation or its infliction: embarrassment, heartache, etc.
pos: noun
tags: countable
uncountable
examples: Every time she says 'goodbye' it is torture!
Coventry City midfielder Josh Ruffels described his 11 months out injured as 'absolute torture' after the goalless draw with Derby County Under-21s. (http://www.ccfc.co.uk/news/article/eleven-months-of-absolute-torture-760652.aspx)
gloss: To intentionally inflict severe pain or suffering on (someone), usually with the aim of forcing confessions or punishing them.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
examples: 1 August 2014, Barack Obama, "Press Conference by the President"; transcript published online by the Obama White House Archives, [https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/08/01/press-conference-president [1]].
With respect to the larger point of the RDI report itself, even before I came into office I was very clear that in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 we did some things that were wrong. We did a whole lot of things that were right, but we tortured some folks. We did some things that were contrary to our values.
People who torture often have sadistic tendencies.
Synonyms: enhanced interrogation
torture
torment
excruciate
Related words: tart
torment
tort
torta
agony
agonize
Derived words: antitorture
bamboo torture
C & B torture
C&B torture
C and B torture
Chinese water torture
electrotorture
genitorture
Muldertorture
pretorture
surf torture
torture chamber
torturelike
torturemeister
torture-meister
tortureproof
torturesome
torture stake
torture test
torture-test
torture warrant
Translations:
lang: Armenian
word: չարչարանք
roman: čʻarčʻarankʻ
lang: Czech
word: muka
lang: German
word: Tortur
lang: Hungarian
word: kínszenvedés
lang: Macedonian
word: стра́дање
roman: strádanje
lang: Macedonian
word: страда́ние
roman: stradánie
lang: Macedonian
word: ма́чење
roman: máčenje
lang: Macedonian
word: ма́ка
roman: máka
lang: Norwegian
word: tortur
lang: Russian
word: страда́ние
roman: stradánije
lang: Russian
word: му́ка
roman: múka
lang: Russian
word: муче́ние
roman: mučénije
lang: Spanish
word: suplicio
lang: Turkish
word: işkence
lang: Turkish
word: eziyet