tors-, tort-, -tort, tortu-, torqu-

(Latin: bend, curve, turn, twist)

torsional (adjective), more torsional, most torsional
torsional balance (s) (noun), torsional balances (pl)
torsionally (adverb), more torsionally, most torsionally
tort (s) (noun), torts (pl)
1. A damage, an injury, or a wrongful act done willfully, negligently, or in circumstances involving strict liability, but not involving breach of contract, for which a civil suit can be brought.
2. Etymology: from Middle English, "injury"; from Old French, from Medieval Latin tortum; from Latin, torquere, "to twist, to turn".
tort, torte
tort (TORT) (noun)
In law, damage, injury, or a wrongful act done willfully, negligently, or in circumstances involving strict liability; but not involving breach of contract, for which a civil suit can be brought: "The lawyer established his reputation by specializing in tort cases in which there were wrongful undertakings but no actual violation of contracts between the parties."
torte (TORT, TORT tuh) (noun)
A rich cake made with many eggs and little flour and usually containing chopped nuts: "My sister made a lovely torte which was presented to the guests at her birthday party."

To celebrate his reputation as a top tort lawyer, his cousin baked a torte and filled it with fresh fruit.

tortilla (s) (noun), tortillas (pl)
tortion (s) (noun), tortions (pl)
tortoise (s) (noun), tortoises (pl)
tortoise, turtle
tortoise (TOR tis) (noun)
1. Any of various terrestrial creatures; especially, one of the family Testudinidae, characteristically having thick club-like hind limbs and a high, rounded carapace (protective, shell-like covering): "We kept a desert tortoise for several years as a pet before taking it back to its natural habitat."
2. Anyone who moves slowly; a laggard: "There is an old fable, The Tortoise and the Hare, which describes the tortoise as slow moving but eventually getting where it wanted to go."
turtle (TUR t'l) (noun)
Any of various aquatic, or terrestrial reptiles, having horny toothless jaws and a bony or leathery shell into which the head, limbs, and a tail can retract: "We had a small green turtle in our aquarium as well as several different kinds of fresh water fish."

"When they went to Australia, they saw a sea turtle swimming next to the ship."

When we went to the zoo, we saw the tortoise enclosure which was designed to look like a desert.

Because I had a blister on my foot, I moved like a tortoise when we went to see the turtle enclosure that was a mixed environment of dry and marshy wet land.

tortuose (adjective), more tortuose, most tortuose
Characteristic of winding, twisting, or bending and turning in different directions.
tortuosity (s) (noun), tortuosities (pl)
A condition in which something is twisted, bent, or crooked.
tortuous (adjective), more tortuous, most tortuous
1. A reference to something that has many turns or bends: There are some mountain passes which are tortuous for drivers because of the multitudes of winding curves that exist.

Tortuous reasoning refers to a person's logical thinking which goes in different directions from what some might consider normal or acceptable.

2. Descriptive of anything that is extremely complex or intricate: Some legal arguments presented in court trials can be very tortuous, making them very difficult to understand by those who are not lawyers.
3. Pertaining to being devious or deceitful: Thomas was not very straightforward and he was quite tortuous as he tried to make his wife believe that he loved her even though she knew that he was having a relationship with another woman.
4. Etymology: from Latin tortuosus, from tortus, "twisting, a twist, a winding"; from Latin torquere, "to twist".
Full of twists or curves and winding in different directions.
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tortuous, torturous
tortuous (TOR choo uhs) (adjective)
1. Having or marked by repeated turns or bends; winding or twisting: "We drove on a tortuous road through the mountains."
2. Not straightforward; circuitous; devious: "The story had a tortuous plot."

"The politician had so much tortuous reasoning that we simply could not believe anything she said."

3. Highly involved; complex: "There were so many tortuous legal procedures that it took more than a year before there was a final decision."
torturous (TOR chuhr uhs) (adjective )
1. Of, relating to, or causing torture: "It was a torturous decision to decide not to go skiing in the mountains this winter."
2. Twisted; strained: "The mountain roads were torturous and required careful attention in order to drive safely."

Although tortuous and torturous both come from the Latin word torquere, "to twist", their primary meanings are distinct.

Tortuous means "twisting" (a tortuous road) or by extension "complex" or "devious."

Torturous refers primarily to torture and the pain associated with it; however, torturous also can be used in the sense of "twisted" or "strained", and tortured is an even stronger synonym; such as, "tortured reasoning".

tortuously (adverb), more tortuously, most tortuously
tortuousness (s) (noun) (usually no plural)
A twisted shape or position.

Inter-related cross references involving word units meaning "bend, curve, turn": diversi-; diverticul-; flect-, flex-; gyro-; meand-; -plex; streph-; stroph-; tropo-; verg-; vers-; volv-.