blackmail

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noun black·mail \ˈblak-ˌmāl\

: the crime of threatening to tell secret information about someone unless the person being threatened gives you money or does what you want

: something (such as money) that is received through blackmail

Full Definition of BLACKMAIL

1

:  a tribute anciently exacted on the Scottish border by plundering chiefs in exchange for immunity from pillage

2

a :  extortion or coercion by threats especially of public exposure or criminal prosecution

b :  the payment that is extorted

— blackmail transitive verb

— black·mail·er noun

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Examples of BLACKMAIL

1. She was a victim of blackmail.
2. The servant extorted blackmail from her employer.

Origin of BLACKMAIL

black + ¹mail

First Known Use: 1552

Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

Rhymes with BLACKMAIL

abseil, airmail, all hail, assail, avail, bake sale, bangtail, blacktail, bobtail, broadscale, broadtail, bucktail, bud scale, canaille, cattail, chain mail, coattail, cocktail, contrail, curtail, derail, detail, doornail, dovetail, downscale, ducktail, e-mail, entail, exhale, fan mail, fantail, female, fife rail, fire sale, fishtail, folktale, foresail, foxtail, fresh gale, full-scale, gapped scale, Glendale, gray scale, greenmail, guardrail, Hallel, handrail, hangnail, headsail, hightail, hobnail, horntail, horsetail, impale, inhale, junk mail, Longueuil, lugsail, mainsail, mare's tail, Mondale, moon snail, oxtail, pass-fail, percale, pigtail, pintail, pinwale, plate rail, pot ale, prevail, rattail, regale, resale, rescale, retail, right whale, ringtail, Sangreal, Scottsdale, sea kale, shavetail, shirttail, skysail, slop pail, small-scale, snail mail, soft hail, split rail, springtail, spritsail, square sail, staysail, strong gale, surveil, swordtail, taffrail, tag sale, telltale, third rail, thumbnail, timescale, toenail, topsail, travail, trysail, unnail, unveil, upscale, ventail, voice mail, wage scale, wagtail, wassail, whiptail, white sale, whitetail, white whale, whole gale, wholesale, yard sale