ordeal – From Old English ordel, “judgment,” figuratively, an experience testing endurance, patience, courage, etc.—also a test of guilt or innocence that was one of severe pain or torture. More…
torment – Comes from a Latin word, tormentum, for an instrument of torture. More…
tortuous, torturous – Tortuous is “winding, crooked, full of twists and turns,” and torturous, based on “torture,” is “painful, characterized by suffering.” More…
travel – From Latin trepaliare, “torture,” it evolved into “journey” from the allusion to the inevitable trouble of medieval travel. More…