Obs. Forms: 3–5 tor, 4 toor, 4–5 toore, 5 tore, toure. See also TERE a. [The Old Norse and OE. adverbial particle tor- ‘hardly, with difficulty, ill-,’ used esp. with verbal adjs. as in ON. tor-fengr hard to get, tor-næmr hard to learn, tor-sýnn hard to see, tor-talinn pple., counted with difficulty, tor-tryggr hard of belief; also OE. tor-cyrre hard to turn or convert, tor-beʓéte hard to get. In ME., esp. in those parts in which the Norse influence was strong, this particle was treated as a separate word, in the sense ‘hard, difficult, ill,’ and was used esp. with the infinitive, as tor (for) to tell, tor for to ken; the former of these was a favorite phrase of the alliterative poets. In some instances, as already in Ormin, tor alone was used attributively. ON. and OE. tor- were cognate with OHG. zur-, Gothic tuz-, Gr. δυς-, Skr. dus-, hard, evil, ill-: with the ON. and OE. words cf. Gr. δυσαής ill-blowing, δύσβρωτος hard to eat, δυσμαθής difficult to learn. Senses 2 and 3 appear to be the same word, but the change of sense is remarkable.]
1. Difficult, hard, toilsome; irksome, tedious; = TERE a.
c. 1200. Ormin, 6350. Hard & strang & tor & hefiȝ lif to ledenn.
a. 1225. Ancr. R., 108 (MS. T.). Ho is grucchere, & ful itohen: dangeruse & tor for to paien. Ibid., 254. An honful ȝerden arn tor to breken [v.r. beoð erueð forte breken].
13[?]. Cursor M., 14085 (Cott.). O þair gladnes war tor to tell.
c. 1350. Will. Palerne, 5066. It were toor forto telle treuli al þe soþe.
c. 1400. Destr. Troy, 644. But this tyme is so tore & we no tome haue.
2. Strong, sturdy. (? Hard to conquer.)
c. 1400–50. Alexander, 5500. Ser Tarbyn, a tulke with many toore thousandis.
c. 1400. Destr. Troy, 320. Grete toures full toure all þe toune vmbe. Ibid., 1035. Of the tidiest of Tessaile, tore men of strenght. Ibid., 1131. Telamon, þat is a tore kyng. Ibid., 6156. Dissyrus … Of all the Troiens to tell torest in armys.
3. In vague or loose uses: a. Full, replete; b. Great, violent, excessive.
c. 1400. Destr. Troy, 3348. Trowe ye not Troy is tore of all godis, As plaintiouse in yche place as þe prouynse of Achaia? Ibid., 13723. Þis proud in hir yre … Bad hym turne vnto tessail in a tore hast.
