Word.ws English Dictionary

Synonyms of torment

35 similar words

Another word for torment is smart. Other synonyms of torment are grief, pain, distress, hardship and anguish.

Synonyms and similar words for torment

nounAny extreme pain, anguish or misery, either physical or mental.

  • misery dialectal
  • painThe condition or fact of suffering or anguish especially mental, as opposed to pleasure; torment; distress.
  • wark dialectal
  • anguishExtreme pain, either of body or mind; excruciating distress; an emotional state caused by intense misery or suffering.
  • rendA violent separation of parts.
  • difficulty
  • distressPhysical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature.
  • griefSuffering, hardship.
  • hardshipDifficulty or trouble; hard times.
  • smartMental pain or suffering; grief; affliction.
  • tortureSevere pain or anguish, of mind or body.
  • troubleThe state of being troubled, disturbed, or distressed mentally; unease, disquiet.

verbTo cause severe suffering to (stronger than to vex but weaker than to torture.).

  • afflictTo cause (someone) pain, suffering or distress.
  • excruciateTo inflict intense pain or mental distress on (someone); to torture.
  • aggrieveTo cause someone to feel pain or sorrow to; to afflict.
  • agonizeTo cause agony or anguish in someone.
  • dere British, dialectalTo hurt; harm; injure; wound.
  • hurt
  • irritateTo induce pain in (all or part of a body or organism).
  • pangTo cause to have great pain or suffering; to torment, to torture.
  • pineTo inflict pain upon; to torment.
  • rackTo cause (someone) to suffer pain.
  • wring figurativelyTo cause distress or pain to (a person or their heart, soul, etc.); to distress, to torment.
  • lacerate
  • plagueTo afflict with a disease or other calamity.
  • atray dialectalTo vex; trouble; frighten; torment; harass.
  • cag dialectal, slangTo vex; annoy; insult, offend; grieve.
  • harassTo put excessive burdens upon (someone); to subject (someone) to anxieties.
  • harrowTo traumatize or disturb; to torment, distress or vex.
  • harryTo harass, bother or distress with demands, threats, or criticism.
  • vexTo cause (mental) suffering to; to distress.
  • ache literary, rareTo cause someone or something to suffer pain.
  • throe obsoleteTo cause (someone) to feel throes, as if in childbirth; to put in agony.
  • engrieve archaicTo cause grief to, to vex or pain; to associate with vexation or pain.
  • grame obsoleteTo vex; grill; make angry or sorry.

Meaning of torment

  1. noun A catapult or other kind of war-engine.
  2. noun Torture, originally as inflicted by an instrument of torture.
  3. noun Any extreme pain, anguish or misery, either physical or mental.

Full definition of torment

torment in other languages

Questions about synonyms of torment

What is another word for torment?
Torment has 35 synonyms on Word.ws, such as smart, grief, pain, distress, hardship, anguish, trouble and torture.
What does torment mean?
Torment means a catapult or other kind of war-engine.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: torment (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “Synonyms of torment.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/torment. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.