Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

torch

/ˈtoːtʃ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.74 in modern English

Syllables
torch
IPA
/ˈtoːtʃ/
10
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground, and used chiefly as a light source.

noun

A stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground, and used chiefly as a light source.

noun

A stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground, and used chiefly as a light source.

noun

A flower which is red or red-orange in colour like a flame.

noun

A spike (“kind of inflorescence”) made up of spikelets.

noun

The common mullein, great mullein, or torchwort (Verbascum thapsus).

noun

A cactus with a very elongated body; a ceroid cactus; a torch cactus or torch-thistle.

Obsolete

noun

A source of enlightenment or guidance.

Example Sentences

Etymology

The noun is derived from Middle English torch, torche (“large candle; lighted stick; (figurative) sunbeam”), from Old French torche, torque (“torch; bundle of (twisted) straw”) (modern French torche); further etymology uncertain, probably from Vulgar Latin *torca (“coiled object”) (referring to a torch made from twisted plant fibres dipped in a flammable substance such as pitch), from Latin torqua, a variant of torquis (“collar of twisted metal, torque; wreath”), from torqueō (“to twist, wind”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *terkʷ- (“to spin; to turn”). Etymology 1 sense 2.3 (Verbascum thapsus) is either due to the plant’s spike of yellow flowers, or because its leaves and stalks were used to make torches (noun etymology 1 sense 1). Etymology 1 sense 3.2 (“precious cause, etc., which needs to be protected and transmitted to others”) is derived from Latin lampada trādere, from Ancient Greek λᾰμπᾰ́δᾰ πᾰρᾰδιδόναι (lămpắdă părădidónai, “to hand over the torch”), a reference to the torch race held at various festivals such as the Panathenaic Games in Ancient Greece, which involved a relay where a torch was passed from one runner to another. The verb is derived from the noun.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: *terkʷ-, torch, torche, *torca, torqua, torcher

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈtoːtʃ/
  • British English: /ˈtɔːtʃ/

Usage

Inflected Forms

torches (plural) torches (present, singular) torching (participle, present) torched (participle, past) torched (past)

Derived Forms

driptorch strobotorch torchbearer torchbearing torchless torchlight torchlighted torchlit torchlike torchmaker torchmaking torchman

Phrases

carry a torch carry the torch carry a torch for dynamo torch hold a torch for oxy-gas torch pass the torch Peruvian torch

Frequently Paired Words

handlamp headlamp

Synonyms

brand firebrand flambeau torchlight burn ignite inflame set ablaze aflame alight conflagrate fire

Rhymes With

porch scorch dortch foertsch blorch

Questions

How do you pronounce torch?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈtoːtʃ/.
What does torch mean?
A stick of wood or plant fibres twisted together, with one end soaked in a flammable substance such as resin or tallow and set on fire, which is held in the hand, put into a wall bracket, or stuck into the ground, and used chiefly as a light source.
Where does torch come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce torch

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “torch”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈtoːtʃ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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