as in distorting
to twist (something) out of a natural or normal shape or condition
the acrobat is able to contort his body so that it almost looks like a pretzel
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Recent Examples of contorting
Outside that moment, everyone resumed contorting themselves to serve the Establishment in one way or another to survive.
—
Eddie Huang, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2025
The shoulder cut-out is designed for side sleepers, so there’s no pillow-bunching or spine-contorting in the process of getting comfortable.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 6 Oct. 2025
The precursor to his game-sealing catch Sunday night in New Jersey became appropriately lost in a pretty compelling tale, but his final three steps before a body-contorting catch are all backpedals, spinning nearly 180 degrees to make the grab.
—Kansas City Star, 25 Sep. 2025
That usually means contorting my limbs into weird, uncomfortable positions while trying to watch a movie on my phone.
—Amelia McBride, Travel + Leisure, 21 Sep. 2025
Both boys and girls should have the freedom to experience childhood free from the pressures of contorting their growing bodies into narrow definitions of beauty or feeling the inevitable resentment and pain that comes from trying to achieve these impossible standards.
—Ashleigh N. Deluca, Parents, 4 Sep. 2025
The media environment, across genres, has been contorting rapidly for over a decade, as creators of myriad forms of content compete for shrinking attention spans in an increasingly crowded market.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
In that dispute, four gun owners and a local hunting store accused lower courts of contorting the Supreme Court’s recent expansions on Second Amendment rights to uphold Rhode Island’s restrictions.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 2 June 2025
Eddie Huang, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2025
The shoulder cut-out is designed for side sleepers, so there’s no pillow-bunching or spine-contorting in the process of getting comfortable.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 6 Oct. 2025
The precursor to his game-sealing catch Sunday night in New Jersey became appropriately lost in a pretty compelling tale, but his final three steps before a body-contorting catch are all backpedals, spinning nearly 180 degrees to make the grab.
—Kansas City Star, 25 Sep. 2025
That usually means contorting my limbs into weird, uncomfortable positions while trying to watch a movie on my phone.
—Amelia McBride, Travel + Leisure, 21 Sep. 2025
Both boys and girls should have the freedom to experience childhood free from the pressures of contorting their growing bodies into narrow definitions of beauty or feeling the inevitable resentment and pain that comes from trying to achieve these impossible standards.
—Ashleigh N. Deluca, Parents, 4 Sep. 2025
The media environment, across genres, has been contorting rapidly for over a decade, as creators of myriad forms of content compete for shrinking attention spans in an increasingly crowded market.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
In that dispute, four gun owners and a local hunting store accused lower courts of contorting the Supreme Court’s recent expansions on Second Amendment rights to uphold Rhode Island’s restrictions.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 2 June 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contorting
Verb
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Still, another way to view it is that AI is the latest tool in humanity’s long history of shaping and distorting narratives.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
13 Oct. 2025
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Peering into deep space, NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has helped astronomers find places to study gravitational lensing, an effect in which massive objects such as galaxies warp space-time itself, bending and distorting the light of even more distant galaxies behind them.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Rice team designed a material that remains stable while also deforming on command, a combination not previously seen in soft structures.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Murphy also revealed there would be a focus on the Hungarian noblewoman Elizabeth Báthory, who, along with her servants, was accused of torturing and killing hundreds of young women in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
9 Oct. 2025
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More than 3,000 Hamas fighters gunned down civilians, torturing and mutilating some of them in their own homes, still in their pajamas.—
Romina Ruiz-Goiriena,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Plumbing in an old house requires reaching into funny crevices and screwing things the right way.—
Matthew Hutson,
IEEE Spectrum,
22 Sep. 2025
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Put the stopper back in the sink before re-screwing the pivot nut, horizontal rod, and sliding your under sink items back into place.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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To prevent it from shifting, use a rug pad or corner grippers that secure it in place and stop the corners from curling.—
Maria Sabella,
Better Homes & Gardens,
14 Oct. 2025
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Guimaraes had got Newcastle motoring, curling in a long-range shot after 58 minutes.—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Contorting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contorting. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
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