From Old French torche 'twisted wax-dipped tow,' from Latin torquēre 'to twist.'
A portable means of illumination, such as a burning stick or (in British English) a battery-powered flashlight.
From Old French torche 'torch,' originally 'something twisted' (a twist of tow dipped in wax), from Vulgar Latin *torca, from Latin torquēre 'to twist.' The British English sense of 'flashlight' dates from 1922, while Americans retained 'flashlight.' Key roots: *terkʷ- (Proto-Indo-European: "to twist").