"Torque" is a way of describing how hard something is turned or twisted, in the same way we talk about "forces" as something that pushes or pulls. If we want to move a heavy box across the floor, we need a large force to push it. In the same way, if we want to turn a rusty bolt we will need a large torque.

Suppose you do have a rusty bolt that is stuck and you need to turn it. You know you will need a large torque to do this, but how can you make this? It’s easy! It turns out that torque is the product of force and distance. In other words, to make a large torque you need either a large force or a large distance. To turn a rusty bolt you would put a wrench on it and push or pull on the end of the wrench. The "force" is how hard you push or pull, and the "distance" is how far from the bolt you are pushing or pulling. If you push or pull far away from the bolt, which requires a long wrench, the torque is bigger than if you push close to the bolt. If you have a really long wrench you dont need much force to turn your bolt, whereas if you only have a small wrench you will need to push or pull much harder to produce the same torque. Another important ingredient is that you push on the wrench in a direction perpendicular to the wrench.

You may also have heard the word torque describing the performance a car engine, for example you might read that a certain engine produces "high torque". This means that the engine is good at turning the wheels of the car.