a heavy rain
"The sudden torrent swept away the small bridge in minutes."
a violently fast stream of water (or other liquid)
"the houses were swept away in the torrent"
an overwhelming number or amount
"a flood of requests"
"a torrent of abuse"
A violent flow, as of water, lava, etc.; a stream suddenly raised and running rapidly, as down a precipice.
"Users shared their latest movie download as a torrent file on the community forum."
A set of files obtainable through a peer-to-peer network, especially BitTorrent.
In plain English: A torrent is an extremely heavy and fast-moving flow of water, rain, or other things coming down all at once.
"Heavy rain turned into a torrent that flooded the street within minutes."
Usage: Use "torrent" to describe an overwhelming flood of water, lava, or metaphorical things like criticism and rain that come down rapidly and violently. Avoid using it for slow-moving streams; instead, choose synonyms like "flow" or "current" when the movement is gentle rather than sudden and forceful.
To download in a torrent.
"The user downloaded the entire movie file using a torrent client to share it across peer networks."
Rolling or rushing in a rapid stream.
"The heavy rain turned the dry creek into a roaring torrent that rushed down the hillside."
In plain English: Torrent means something that is happening very quickly and with great force, like water rushing down a steep hill during heavy rain.
"The torrent rain poured down all night long, flooding the streets and making travel impossible for everyone in town today."
The word "torrent" comes from the Latin torrēns, which originally meant "burning" or "seething." It entered English via French and Italian to describe a fast-flowing stream of water.