waterboarding

[waw-ter-bawr-ding, wot-er‑]

noun

1. a form of torture in which water is poured onto the face and head of the immobilized victim so as to induce a fear of drowning.

waterboarding

/ ˈwɔːtəˌbɔːdɪŋ /

noun

1. a form of torture in which the victim is immobilized and has water poured on his or her face, producing a severe gag reflex, to simulate drowning

Word History and Origins

Origin of waterboarding¹

First recorded in 2000–05; water + board + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

In our American experiment, queerness has clearly offered “We, the People” some exponential benefit of stick-to-it-ness, multiplicity of skill and wit in the struggle, as our society has withstood several true tests to soar higher than Charlemagne without imprisoning the satirists or waterboarding the joketellers.

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“For me, it was like waterboarding. People think, ‘Oh, my God, so much fun to act in those scenes.’

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Robin Wright recalls how difficult shooting the pool scene was: “For me, it was like waterboarding.”

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Other examples of his misconduct included threatening a woman with waterboarding, posing for pictures with weapons and stealing milk powder worth £23.50 from Asda.

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Following his arrest in Pakistan in 2003, Mohammed spent three years at secret CIA prisons known as "black sites", where he was subjected to simulated drowning, or "waterboarding", 183 times, among other so-called "advanced interrogation techniques" that included sleep deprivation and forced nudity.

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