torment

Compared meaning: great pain or suffering (noun).

比较义项：极大的痛苦、折磨（名词）。

• torture

  Suggests suffering deliberately and severely inflicted by someone else, typically linked to war, captivity or interrogation; the strongest, most dramatic of the three.

  强调痛苦是他人蓄意、极端施加的，常与战争、囚禁或审讯有关；是三者中语气最强烈、最具戏剧性的一个。

  The prisoner described the torture he endured during the war.

  那名囚犯描述了他在战争期间所忍受的折磨。

• agony

  Emphasizes the intensity of pain, often sudden and physical though it can also be mental; commonly used in the fixed phrase 'in agony'.

  强调痛苦的剧烈程度，常指突发的身体疼痛，也可指精神上的痛苦；常用于固定搭配“in agony”（痛苦万分）。

  He was in agony after twisting his ankle on the stairs.

  他在楼梯上扭伤了脚踝后痛苦万分。

• torment 本词

  Highlights suffering that is ongoing or repeated, often caused by something persistently disturbing, like noise or worry; frequently used as a verb.

  强调持续或反复出现的痛苦，常由噪音、忧虑等持续困扰造成；常用作动词。

  Loud noises at night began to torment him during exams.

  考试期间，夜里的噪音开始折磨他。

All three mean intense suffering. Torture stresses extreme pain caused by someone, linked to war or interrogation. Agony stresses intense, sudden pain, physical or mental, as in 'in agony'. Torment stresses ongoing, repeated suffering, often from noise or worry (noun sense only).

这三个词都表示强烈的痛苦或折磨，但侧重不同：torture 强调他人蓄意造成的极端痛苦，常与战争、囚禁或审讯有关，语气最强烈、最具戏剧性；agony 强调痛苦的剧烈程度，常指突发的身体疼痛，也可指精神痛苦，常见搭配“in agony”；torment 强调持续、反复出现的折磨感，常由噪音、忧虑等长期困扰引起，也常作动词使用。torture 和 torment 在其他语境中也可作动词表示“折磨某人”，但本卡片只比较作为名词的这一义项。

Compared meaning: extreme suffering caused to someone (noun).

比较义项：使人遭受的极度痛苦或折磨（名词）。

• torture

  Emphasizes severe pain deliberately, and often violently, inflicted on someone, typically as punishment, coercion, or abuse; strongly associated with interrogation and physical cruelty.

  强调蓄意且常带有暴力性质地施加于某人身上的剧烈痛苦，通常与惩罚、逼供或虐待有关，与审讯和肉体摧残密切相关。

  Under torture, the prisoner confessed to crimes he never committed.

  在严刑拷打下，那名囚犯供认了他从未犯过的罪行。

• torment 本词

  Emphasizes persistent suffering or distress caused by a person, situation, or thing, without necessarily implying deliberate cruelty or physical violence; often mental or emotional.

  强调由人、情境或事物引起的持续痛苦或困扰，未必带有蓄意残忍或暴力的意味，往往是精神或情感上的煎熬。

  The recurring nightmares were a torment that haunted her for years.

  反复出现的噩梦，是纠缠她多年的一种折磨。

Both words mean extreme suffering. Torture stresses severe pain deliberately, often violently, caused to someone, as punishment or abuse. Torment stresses ongoing distress, coming from a person, event, or thing, without deliberate cruelty; it is often mental or emotional. Verb uses are not compared.

这两个词都表示极度的痛苦，但侧重不同：torture强调蓄意且常带有暴力性质地施加于某人的剧烈痛苦，多与惩罚、逼供或虐待相关；torment强调持续不断的折磨或困扰，起因可以是人、事或物，未必带有蓄意残忍的意味，常指精神或情感上的煎熬。这里不比较torture和torment作动词（表示「折磨某人」）的用法。

Compared meaning: to cause great pain or suffering (verb).

比较义项：使痛苦、折磨（动词）。

• rack

  Rack is mostly used in the passive pattern 'racked with/by', for pain, guilt or doubt that seems to twist or strain the body or mind; it rarely names a person as the one doing the tormenting.

  rack 多用于被动结构“be racked with/by”，描述像要把身体或心理“绞碎”一样的疼痛、内疚或疑虑，很少用来指某人主动折磨别人。

  Her body was racked with pain after the long flight.

  长途飞行后，她全身被剧痛折磨得难以忍受。

• torture

  Torture is the strongest word: it means to inflict severe pain deliberately and often systematically, especially as punishment, coercion, or cruelty, most commonly physical and linked to prisoners or war.

  torture 是语气最强的词，指蓄意、常常是有系统地施加剧烈痛苦，多为身体上的折磨，常与惩罚、逼供或战俘等语境相关。

  Enemy soldiers tortured the captured spy to extract information.

  敌军士兵严刑拷打那名被俘的间谍，以逼取情报。

• torment 本词

  Torment describes persistent, wearing suffering, often mental or emotional, caused by something ongoing like noise, worry, or teasing rather than a single deliberate act of violence.

  torment 描述持续不断、令人心力交瘁的痛苦，往往是心理或情绪上的，由噪音、忧虑或戏弄等持续存在的事物造成，而不是一次蓄意的暴力行为。

  Mosquitoes tormented the campers all night with their constant buzzing.

  蚊子嗡嗡作响，整夜折磨着露营者。

All three mean to cause great suffering. Rack is used passively, as in 'racked with guilt', for intense emotional pain. Torture is the strongest, meaning to inflict pain deliberately, for prisoners or interrogation. Torment means ongoing, mental suffering, not always violent (nouns not compared).

这三个词都可以表示让人承受巨大的痛苦或折磨，但语气强弱和典型用法不同：rack 多用于被动结构“racked with/by...”，描述内疚、痛苦等情绪或感觉几乎要把人“绞碎”；torture 语气最强，强调蓄意、残酷地施加痛苦，常见于战俘、审讯等语境；torment 强调持续不断、多为心理上的煎熬，未必出自蓄意的暴力行为。这里不比较 rack 作名词表示“搁物架”、torture 作名词表示“酷刑”，以及 torment 作名词表示“折磨（的根源）”的用法。