contort

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verb con·tort \ kən-ˈtȯrt \

Definition of contort

transitive verb

:to twist in a violent manner

features contorted with fury

intransitive verb

:to twist into or as if into a strained shape or expression

His face contorted in a grimace of pain.

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contortion

play \kən-ˈtȯr-shən\ noun

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contortive

play \kən-ˈtȯr-tiv\ adjective

See contort defined for English-language learners

See contort defined for kids

Examples of contort in a Sentence

His body contorted with pain.
The boy contorted his body to squeeze through the gate.
Her face was contorted with rage.

Recent Examples of contort from the Web

Was stripping nude in front of complete strangers and contorting my white, flabby body under fluorescent lighting really necessary to do so?

— julia sullivan, SELF, "I Tried 9 Unique Workout Classes to Try to Break Out of My Fitness Rut," 25 Aug. 2017
Matt is going to put you in a bunch of different spots, contort you.

— andrew lopez, NOLA.com, "How Canada's offense helped Aranda's young LSU defense grow this offseason," 22 Aug. 2017
Martin, the suave crooner who made ladies swoon, was the straight man; Lewis, the body-contorting and asexual man-child, got the laughs.

— lawrence toppman, charlotteobserver, "Comic actor, tireless telethon host and needy performer Jerry Lewis dies at 91," 20 Aug. 2017
Like the T-1000 from Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the bot can contort itself to fit through holes and form tools, such as hooks and antennas.

— andrew wagner, Science | AAAS, "Watch a shape-shifting robot extend its tentacle," 19 July 2017
Robert Allen/Detroit Free Press One shows a cartooned face of former President Richard Nixon contorted into a hideous monster, frame-by-frame.

— robert allen, Detroit Free Press, "Why the City of Dearborn is auctioning Nixon posters, diapers," 18 July 2017
Since Congress returned from a Fourth of July recess period, many GOP members in both chambers have contorted themselves to avoid questions about Trump’s relationship with Russia.

— abby livingston, star-telegram, "Texas Republican congressman says Trump should kick kids out of White House," 13 July 2017
The result was mesmerizing, despite its exquisite slowness: The sea star curled and contorted its five arms to hoist itself up and back into its original position.

— clark fair, Alaska Dispatch News, "Colorful kaleidoscope of marine life in Homer tidepools," 8 July 2017
Mach inhabits his character with great physicality, giving the illusion of Quasimodo’s deformity by contorting his own body — and with a little help from Bromelmeier’s jacket with hump.

— dana oland, idahostatesman, "Five reasons not to miss ISF’s ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’," 2 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'contort.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

Circus contortionists are known for twisting their bodies into pretzels; such contortions tend to be easier for females than for males, and much easier for the young than for the old. When trying to say something uncomfortable or dishonest, people often go through verbal contortions. But when someone else "twists" something you said or did, we usually say instead that they've distorted it.

Origin and Etymology of contort

Middle English, from Latin contortus, past participle of contorquēre, from com- + torquēre to twist — more at ¹torture

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

contort Synonyms

Synonyms

deform, distort, misshape, screw, squinch, torture, warp

Related Words

deface, disfigure; wrench, wrest, wring; coil, curl, loop, spiral, twine, wind, wreathe

Near Antonyms

straighten, unbend, uncurl

Synonym Discussion of contort

deform, distort, contort, warp means to mar or spoil by or as if by twisting. deform may imply a change of shape through stress, injury, or accident of growth.

- a face deformed by hatred

distort and contort both imply a wrenching from the natural or normal, but contort suggests a more involved twisting and a more grotesque and painful result.

- the odd camera angle distorts the figure
- disease had contorted her body

warp indicates an uneven shrinking that bends or twists out of a flat plane.

- warped floorboards

CONTORT Defined for English Language Learners

contort

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verb

Definition of contort for English Language Learners

: to twist into an unusual appearance or shape

CONTORT Defined for Kids

contort

play

verb con·tort \ kən-ˈtȯrt \

Definition of contort for Students

contorted; contorting

:to give an unusual appearance or unnatural shape to by twisting

His face contorted with anger.

Word Root of contort

The Latin word torquēre, meaning “to twist,” and its form tortus give us the root tort. Words from the Latin torquēre have something to do with twisting. A retort, or angry reply to another's words, twists those words back at the person. To contort is to twist the body in unusual ways. To distort is to twist something, such as the truth, so much that it appears to be something else.