tormented

IPA/tɔːˈment/
KK[tˈɔrmˌɛntɪd]IPA/tɔːrˈment/

tormented — verb

  • tormentedpresent simple I / you / we / they
  • tormenteds3rd person singular
  • tormenteding-ing form
  • tormentededpast simple

1. to make someone or an animal experience repeated physical or emotional pain, oft

1.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to make someone or an animal experience repeated physical or emotional pain, often in a way that feels cruel or unfair

Example

A group of older students tormented the new boy every day after school.

active voice: torment + direct object

Gabriel was tormented by guilt long after he told the lie.

passive: be tormented by [emotion]

Common collocations
  • tormented by guilt
  • tormented by doubt
  • tormented by memories
  • tormented by nightmares
Synonyms
  • torture

    suggests more intense, often physical pain, while torment can be emotional

  • persecute

    implies unfair treatment based on identity or beliefs, often over a long period

  • harass

    milder and more common; repeated annoyance rather than deep suffering

Antonyms
  • comfort

    to soothe and ease someone's pain instead of causing it

  • relieve

    to reduce or remove suffering

Grammar Patterns

torment + person/animal

be tormented by + something

Usage Note

Commonly used in passive voice with 'by' to show the cause of suffering. The subject causing torment can be a person, a situation, or an emotion.

Common Mistakes

The memory tormented on him for years.
The memory tormented him for years.
'torment' takes a direct object without a preposition.

tormented — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All three words describe pain, but they differ in scope. Suffering is the broadest term—it covers any kind of physical or emotional pain, from mild to severe. Agony refers to a sudden, intense burst of pain that is almost unbearable, such as the agony of a broken bone. Anguish focuses purely on emotional or mental pain, like the anguish a parent feels when their child is in danger. Torment (noun sense 1) sits between these: it is deep and lasting, but not necessarily as sharp as agony, and can include both physical and emotional pain. For example, you might feel torment while waiting for bad news, agony when you burn your hand, and anguish when you lose someone you love.

agony ↗anguish ↗suffering ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • torment of doubt
  • torment of guilt
  • torment of waiting
  • torment of pain

Adverbs

  • constantly tormented
  • visibly tormented
  • secretly tormented

Phrases

  • be tormented by
  • suffer torment
  • cause torment
  • a source of torment
  • put someone out of their torment

Prepositions

  • tormented by
  • in torment
  • torment of
  • a torment to

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Tormented comes from the verb torment, which entered English through Old French tormenter, from Latin tormentum, meaning 'a twisting instrument or rack used for torture'. The Latin root torquēre means 'to twist'. Over time, the physical sense of twisting pain widened to include emotional and mental suffering.

First known use

13th century

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Verb