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Extort vs Plunder - What's the difference?

extort | plunder |

In transitive terms the difference between extort and plunder

is that extort is to wrest from an unwilling person by physical force, menace, duress, torture, or any undue or illegal exercise of power or ingenuity; to wrench away (from); to tear away; to wring (from); to exact; as, to extort contributions from the vanquished; to extort confessions of guilt; to extort a promise; to extort payment of a debt while plunder is to make extensive (over)use of, as if by plundering; to use or use up wrongfully.

As a noun plunder is

an instance of plundering.

extort

English

(Webster 1913)

Verb

(en verb)
  • To wrest from an unwilling person by physical force, menace, duress, torture, or any undue or illegal exercise of power or ingenuity; to wrench away (from); to tear away; to wring (from); to exact; as, to extort contributions from the vanquished; to extort confessions of guilt; to extort a promise; to extort payment of a debt.
  • (legal) To obtain by means of the offense of extortion.
  • (transitive, and, intransitive, medicine, ophthalmology) To twist outwards.
  • Derived terms

    * extortion * extortionate * extortionist

    See also

    * intort

    plunder

    English

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To pillage, take or destroy all the goods of, by force (as in war); to raid, sack.
  • ''The mercenaries plundered the small town.
    The shopkeeper was plundered of his possessions by the burglar.
  • To take (goods) by pillage.
  • The mercenaries plundered all the goods they found.
  • To take by force or wrongfully; to commit robbery or looting, to raid.
  • ''"Now to plunder , mateys!" screamed a buccaneer, to cries of "Arrgh!" and "Aye!" all around.
  • To make extensive (over)use of, as if by plundering; to use or use up wrongfully.
  • ''The miners plundered the jungle for its diamonds till it became a muddy waste.
  • * 2014 , , " Southampton hammer eight past hapless Sunderland in barmy encounter", The Guardian , 18 October 2014:
  • The Serb teed up Steve Davis, who crossed low for Graziano Pellè to plunder his fifth league goal of the campaign.

    Derived terms

    * plunderable * plunderage * plunderer * plunderous

    Noun

    (-)
  • An instance of plundering
  • The loot attained by plundering
  • ''The Hessian kept his choicest plunder in a sack that never left his person, for fear that his comrades would steal it.
  • (slang, dated) baggage; luggage