system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: What is a .torrent file and how does it work?
gpt
Torrents are whats called Peer To Peer (p2p). This means you download things from many other people, and not a central server. And those people can download from you too.

a .torrent file is basically like a shopping list.

It has

1. A list about what files you want to download. It has the names of the files and folders you need. This is like putting the ingredients for dinner on a shopping list. 


2. It has a list of who can give you those files. So your buddy Jimmy might have the cooking oil, and your buddy Sam might have the tomatoes. Similarily, the .torrent files helps your download client know who has the files, and where they are.

This means, if someone has downloaded 10% of a file you want, and you have downloaded 95%. Your torrent client will check if they have the 5% you are missing, and if they do, you get that from them, even though they have downloaded much less. Theyll also download from your 95%. Downloading is called Leeching, and Sharing is called seeding. The torrent file helps you find Seeders, and also helps you find Leechers that need what you have downloaded.