contort
Americanverb (used with object)
-
contorts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
contorted,
past participle, past
-
contorting
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
contorts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
contorted,
past participle, past
-
contorting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
contortsimple
-
contortssimple
-
have contortedperfect
-
has contortedperfect
-
am contortingprogressive
-
are contortingprogressive
-
is contortingprogressive
-
have been contortingperfect progressive
-
has been contortingperfect progressive
Past
-
contortedsimple
-
had contortedperfect
-
was contortingprogressive
-
were contortingprogressive
-
had been contortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of contort
1555–65; < Latin contortus twisted together, past participle of contorquēre. See con-, tort
Explanation
To contort something is to bend or twist it out of its original shape. Faces are often said to contort with one particular emotion or another. In general contort refers to something that is fairly adaptable and can return to its previous shape. A face, after it has contorted with rage, for example, will return to its normal expression (unless you've done something really bad.). If you bend or twist your sister's doll, you "break it" rather than "contort it."
Vocabulary lists containing contort
Of Mice and Men
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Twists and Turns: Tor
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
A Long Way Gone
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
You don’t need to contort yourself to fit into someone else’s life, especially if that life doesn’t align with who you are or what you value.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
As much as the series is Mary’s bluestocking origin story, it also spells her freedom, which comes from no longer trying to impress or contort herself to fit the expectations of others.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
This is a book of endless storytelling, as characters contort themselves to please the regime’s shifting narratives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026
With the limited time frame, participating theater crews have to quickly establish a place and a sense of purpose, lending the audience, which must immediately contort to their role as actors, a call to action.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2025
We bonded over the various ways we could contort my Barbie and Ken dolls without breaking them.
From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass
And when Maddie’s disorder tells her she needs to stay in control, she contorts all of this trendy pastel-colored, serif-typefaced wellness to her favor, using it to fuel her harmful compulsions.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
Nevertheless, a cheeky portion of blue-green paint contorts itself into a standing position in the corner, fighting against the weight that urges the rest of the work Earthward.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026
We can literally see it in the shape of the jet stream, which now regularly contorts into deeper waves than it did just a few decades ago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 15, 2025
Callahan, 13, contorts herself into a backbend as 7-year-old Hudson fiddles with a balloon and 10-year-old Keegan plays the piano.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 24, 2023
Then she laughs—a gleeful, inhuman, full-throated laugh that contorts her body into unnatural angles and positions.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Plus, the trigger used to reverse the shape of the contorted molecule in order to release its energy was hydrochloric acid – a highly corrosive substance that must be neutralised after use.
From BBC ● May 7, 2026
There is so much that the public doesn’t know, and even more that can be contorted by disinformation and colloquial slang, making these important subjects the butt of the joke.
From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2026
So, where did a baseball-loving future MLB star growing up in Sherman Oaks come to such a contorted conclusion?
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2026
“I actually find him really small and contorted and tortured.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2025
His hands covering his face, his body all contorted, repeating, “Oh God! Oh God! Oh God!”
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
I have watched videos of people doing cold plunges, giving themselves ear massages and contorting themselves into impossible stretches all in the name of fixing dysregulation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
He developed an uncanny ability to create his own shot under the most difficult of circumstances, manipulating defenses and contorting his way through the lane with ease.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2026
Unbeknownst to the congressman, the recent kindergarten graduate ate up the C-SPAN camera, smiling, contorting, and making faces behind his dad’s back.
From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2024
His gift for contorting himself through the air and landing on the designated spot has made him one of the most sought-after stuntmen.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2024
His eyes got small, and then he cried, his face contorting like a baby who hasn’t figured how his tear ducts work.
From "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
