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definitions

contort

[kuh n-tawrt]
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verb (used with object)

to twist, bend, or draw out of shape; distort.

verb (used without object)

to become twisted, distorted, or strained: His face contorted into a grotesque sneer.

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RELATED WORDS

writhe, deform, convolute, torture, curve, warp, twist, wrench, knot, wind, bend, gnarl, misshape

Nearby words

  1. continuously variable transmission,
  2. continuum,
  3. continuum hypothesis,
  4. conto,
  5. contoid,
  6. contorted,
  7. contortedly,
  8. contortion,
  9. contortionist,
  10. contortive

Origin of contort

1555–65; < Latin contortus twisted together, past participle of contorquēre. See con-, tort
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for contort

British Dictionary definitions for contort

contort

verb

to twist or bend severely out of place or shape, esp in a strained manner
Derived Formscontortive, adjective

Word Origin for contort

C15: from Latin contortus intricate, obscure, from contorquēre to whirl around, from torquēre to twist, wrench
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for contort

contort

v.

early 15c., from Latin contortus, past participle of contorquere "to whirl, twist together," from com- "together" or intensive (see com-) + torquere "to twist" (see thwart). Related: Contorted; contorting.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper