To TORMENT — originally to test metal on a touchstone (basanos), then to examine under torture, then simply to torture or torment. ⚠ Matthew 8 uses it twice, at both ends of the chapter and of the social order: the centurion's boy lies 'terribly TORMENTED' (8:6), and the demons across the lake ask whether Jesus has come 'before the time to TORMENT us' (8:29). A servant's suffering and a demon's dread are named with one word, and nothing in between explains the coincidence. It returns a third time at 14:24, where it is no longer a person or a spirit but the disciples' own BOAT that is 'battered' by the waves — suffering, dread, and now plain physical distress, all inside one verb Matthew keeps reaching for. → first discussed at Matt 8:6