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Extort vs Torture - What's the difference?

extort | torture |

As verbs the difference between extort and torture

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 torture is .

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

    torture

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Intentional causing of somebody's experiencing agony.
  • Using large dogs to attack bound, hand-cuffed prisoners is clearly torture .
    In every war there are acts of torture that cause the world to shudder.
    People confess to anything under torture .
  • (chiefly, literary) The "suffering of the heart" imposed by one on another, as in personal relationships.
  • Every time she says 'goodbye' it is torture !

    Derived terms

    * torture chamber *

    Verb

    (tortur)
  • To intentionally inflict severe pain or suffering on (someone).
  • People who torture often have sadistic tendencies.

    Derived terms

    * *