Torture \Tor"ture\, n. [F.,fr.L. tortura, fr. torquere, tortum, to twist, rack, torture; probably akin to Gr. tre`pein to turn, G. drechsein to turn on a lathe, and perhaps to E. queer. Cf. Contort, Distort, Extort, Retort, Tart, n., Torch, Torment, Tortion, Tort, Trope.]

1. Extreme pain; anguish of body or mind; pang; agony; torment; as, torture of mind. --Shak.

Ghastly spasm or racking torture. --Milton.

2. Especially, severe pain inflicted judicially, either as punishment for a crime, or for the purpose of extorting a confession from an accused person, as by water or fire, by the boot or thumbkin, or by the rack or wheel.

3. The act or process of torturing.

Torture, whitch had always been deciared illegal, and which had recently been declared illegal even by the servile judges of that age, was inflicted for the last time in England in the month of May, 1640. --Macaulay.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
 

Torture \Tor"ture\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tortured (?; 135); p. pr. & vb. n. Torturing.] [Cf. F. Torturer. ]

1. To put to torture; to pain extremely; to harass; to vex.

2. To punish with torture; to put to the rack; as, to torture an accused person. --Shak.

3. To wrest from the proper meaning; to distort. --Jar. Taylor.

4. To keep on the stretch, as a bow. [Obs.]

The bow tortureth the string. --Bacon.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)