Words / B2

TORCH-uh/ˈtɔːtʃə/

Torture is the act of causing severe pain, often to punish or get information; also to cause great mental pain: allegations of torture; tortured syntax (metaphor). Torment is close for mental suffering; torture is the legal/news word for the crime. Name the treaty clause on torture in the source. Mix-up: tortuous (twisting, already elsewhere at a higher level); extra. Do not use torture as a joke for a hard exam.

Meaning

The act of causing severe pain, often to punish or get information; also that pain as a verb.

Examples

• “Name the treaty clause on torture in the human-rights source, not a film scene.”
• “The marker called the syntax tortured, which is the metaphor — still fix the clauses.”

Good to know

allegations / a ban on torture; torture + someone. Close: torment. Trap: tortuous / exam-as-joke. Citizenship, history, and news. Severe pain as a crime, not hyperbole for homework.

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