French word

supplice

Pronunciation

IPA/syplis/

Meaning

  • masculine nountorture

Example

Attendre le bus était un supplice.

Waiting for the bus was torture.

Illustration for supplice (torture)

More examples

Les longues réunions sans pause sont un véritable supplice.

Long meetings without breaks are pure torture.

Core concept

A painful ordeal pressing on someone until escape or endurance seems impossible.

Common phrases

  • un véritable supplice

    sheer torture

  • un supplice quotidien

    daily torture

Similar words

douleur: Pain felt in the body or mind.
souffrance: Prolonged physical or emotional suffering.
peine: Distress or hardship caused by sadness or difficulty.

Definition in French

Peine corporelle ou mentale infligée à quelqu'un, et par extension une situation extrêmement pénible à vivre.

Word origin

The French noun supplice developed from Latin supplicium through Old French, extending from punishment to severe suffering and figurative ordeals.

Usage tips

  • In modern French, un supplice can describe an unpleasant wait or task as an emphatic exaggeration, not only physical punishment.

Other meanings

  • ordealnoun
  • tormentnoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word