tortious

[tawr-shuhs]

adjective

Law.

1. of the nature of or pertaining to a tort.

tortious

/ ˈtɔːʃəs /

adjective

1. law having the nature of or involving a tort; wrongful

Other Word Forms

• tortiously adverb
• untortious adjective
• untortiously adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of tortious¹

1350–1400; Middle English torcious < Anglo-French, equivalent to torci ( on ) torsion + -ous -ous; meaning influenced by tort

Word History and Origins

Origin of tortious¹

C14: from Anglo-French torcious, from torcion, literally: a twisting, from Late Latin tortiō torment, from Latin torquēre to twist; influenced in meaning by _tort

Example Sentences

Relevent sued claiming violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and tortious interference.

From Seattle Times

The PGA Tour filed a countersuit in September accusing LIV of “tortious interference” by inducing top players to breach contracts by claiming the tour could not enforce its rules.

From Washington Times

Judge David Hardy said in his May 4 ruling that the use of a GPS tracking device to monitor the movements of a person could be “a tortious invasion of privacy.”

From Washington Times

Hardy said in his May 4 ruling that the use of a GPS tracking device to monitor the movements of a person could be “a tortious invasion of privacy.”

From Seattle Times

The judge further ruled that Trump had failed to show any "tortious interference" when a Times journalist "provided his niece with a burner phone to communicate about the records," according to The Daily Beast.

From Salon