[tawrch] 
,| 1. | a light to be carried in the hand, consisting of some combustible substance, as resinous wood, or of twisted flax or the like soaked with tallow or other flammable substance, ignited at the upper end. |
| 2. | something considered as a source of illumination, enlightenment, guidance, etc.: the torch of learning. |
| 3. | any of various lamplike devices that produce a hot flame and are used for soldering, burning off paint, etc. |
| 4. | Slang. an arsonist. |
| 5. | Chiefly British. flashlight (def. 1). |
| 6. | to burn or flare up like a torch. |
| 7. | to subject to the flame or light of a torch, as in order to burn, sear, solder, or illuminate. |
| 8. | Slang. to set fire to maliciously, esp. in order to collect insurance. |
| 9. | carry the or a torch for, Slang. to be in love with, esp. to suffer from unrequited love for: He still carries a torch for his ex-wife. |
[tawrch] ,| to point (the joints between roofing slates) with a mixture of lime and hair. |
| torch (tôrch) n.
To cause to burn or undergo combustion, especially with extraordinary rapidity, force, or thoroughness. [Middle English torche, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin *torca, alteration of Latin torqua, variant of torquēs, torque, from Latin torquēre, to twist; see terkw- in Indo-European roots.] |
Torches
On the night of his betrayal, when our Lord was in the garden of Gethsemane, Judas, "having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons" (John 18:1-3). Although it was the time of full moon, yet in the valley of the Kidron "there fell great, deep shadows from the declivity of the mountain and projecting rocks; there were there caverns and grottos, into which a fugitive might retreat; finally, there were probably a garden-house and tower, into whose gloom it might be necessary for a searcher to throw light around." Lange's Commentary. (Nahum 2:3, "torches," Revised Version, "steel," probably should be "scythes" for war-chariots.)