contortion
Americannoun
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the act or process of contorting.
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the state of being contorted.
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a contorted position.
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something contorted or twisted, as in position or meaning.
His account of the incident was a complete contortion of fact.
noun
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the act or process of contorting or the state of being contorted
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a twisted shape or position
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something twisted or out of the ordinary in character, meaning, etc
mental contortions
Other Word Forms
- contortional adjective
- contortioned adjective
- uncontortioned adjective
Etymology
Origin of contortion
1605–15; < Latin contortiōn- (stem of contortiō ) a whirling around. See contort, -ion
Explanation
If you twist your body into a contortion, you might put one leg behind your ear, and clasp your arms behind your back. A contortion is a twisted position. Yoga can feel like a series of contortions to beginners. People who twist their bodies into contortions professionally are called contortionists. In order to become a contortionist, you need to start with a lot of flexibility and a willingness to contort your body into uncomfortable positions. You then need a lot of practice. It is not easy to achieve a perfectly freakish contortion.
Vocabulary lists containing contortion
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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Essential Academic Vocabulary for Middle School Students, List 5
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Twists and Turns: Tor
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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.
This cellular contortion is a process called macropinocytosis.
From Science Daily • Dec. 5, 2024
The new show will feature aerial contortion, foot juggling, modern clowns, and a 34.6-foot unicycle—and audience members will view the show from a curtain-less 360-degree stage.
From National Geographic • Sep. 26, 2023
Other animals such as pangolins and Tepui toads can also spin themselves into a cartwheel, but the contortion isn’t widespread in mammals, let alone reptiles.
From Science Magazine • Apr. 4, 2023
Sprinkling the proceedings with fairy dust, pantomiming prowess and loose-limbed contortion, the blue-painted Kraje makes for an endlessly appealing Puck.
From Washington Post • Jul. 4, 2022
There was no clutter and contortion, no sense of always being under the shadow of something high and gloomy, as in Erhenrang; everything was simple, grandly conceived, and orderly.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
