Torah is a direct borrowing from the Hebrew 'tōrā', which itself derives from the root 'y-r-h', meaning "to throw", "to shoot", or, in a figurative sense, "to point out", "to instruct". This etymological journey connects the physical act of pointing or directing to the abstract concept of providing guidance and law. In Jewish tradition, the term came to refer specifically to the divine instruction and law revealed to Moses, encapsulated in the first five books of the Bible. Thus, the modern English word retains its core sense of authoritative, sacred teaching and legal code, directly linked to its original Hebrew source.

The word is a direct loanword from Hebrew, treated as a simplex unit in English. It originates from the Hebrew word 'tōrā', meaning "instruction", "law", or "teaching".