extorted

verb

past tense of extort
as in exacted
to get (as money) by the use of force or threats a school bully who was used to extorting lunch money from weaker kids

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of extorted The police chief allegedly extorted the victim and the victim’s father in connection with the pending murder case. — Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026 The necessity of it to my defence against a more heinous charge could alone have extorted from me so painful an indecorum. — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 June 2026 Richards attained fame as a pioneering male supermodel in major ad campaigns by the likes of Bruce Weber, Richard Avedon, and Helmut Newton, but all along he was being extorted and exploited by Mierers and his followers to bolster (and bankroll) their shaky, pseudoscientific philosophy. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 16 June 2026 Cutaia, who has a criminal record dating back to the 1990s, extorted two businessmen starting in 2023 — even before his release from federal prison at the end of his 15-year sentence. — John Annese, New York Daily News, 15 June 2026 But Ancel Glink representatives said Odelson, Murphey, Frazier and McGrath overstepped by petitioning to represent Calumet City in both a labor dispute and a lawsuit where a former employee claims Jones extorted him and wrongfully terminated his employment. — Olivia Stevens, Chicago Tribune, 27 May 2026 To dispose of his body, the group allegedly used a familiar method, placing it in a crematorium furnace in a local funeral home whose owner was being extorted by another Hells Angels member. — Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026 Kraken, one of the world’s oldest crypto exchanges, said it’s being extorted by a criminal group that claims to have access to some client account information. — Olga Kharif, Bloomberg, 13 Apr. 2026 At least three organizations have been extorted and suffered hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages after proprietary information was posted online by IT workers. — Lisa Cavazuti, NBC news, 15 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extorted
  1. exacted
  2. coerced
  3. squeezed
  4. wrung
  5. wrested
  6. forced
  7. fleeced
Verb
  • The story exemplifies Bandyopadhyay’s method of locating the partition’s violence beyond the riots, in the economic destitution that followed and what that destitution exacted from women.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 July 2026
  • While Chang’s visual work is a means to consider the harm exacted on Chinese communities in early US history, so is the poem at the heart of the book.
    — Diana Arterian, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026
Definition of exacted
Verb
  • Advocates who filed the lawsuit are concerned that people with disabilities will be steered toward or coerced into using this option.
    — Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Majorities of Americans are worried about election officials being coerced, lax ballot security, and voter intimidation leading up to the 2026 midterm elections, according to new polling from Gallup.
    — Morgan Chalfant, semafor.com, 30 July 2026
Definition of coerced
Verb
  • Denmark is being squeezed from both sides of the NATO alliance.
    — Max Grinstein, The Washington Examiner, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Space food is changing Early astronauts squeezed puréed food from tubes.
    — Sundeep Venkatesan, The Conversation, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of squeezed
Verb
  • With the 2024 election firmly in the rearview, the feverish hunt to weaponize the manosphere for political gain has largely subsided—what more could be wrung from the Tates at this stage?
    — Dan Adler, Vanity Fair, 29 July 2026
  • There is only so much drama left to be wrung from these sexy now-pseudo-singles in their final week.
    — Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 7 July 2026
Definition of wrung
Verb
  • In this case, the production company Embassy Pictures wrested control of Crimewave away from Raimi after a challenging shoot, leading the director to disavow the film.
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 22 July 2026
  • And yet, no one has wrested the crown away from the attention king.
    — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 8 July 2026
Definition of wrested
Verb
  • In the Netherlands and neighboring Germany cargo ships that ply the Rhine and its offshoots have been forced to carry significantly less freight or risk running aground in shallow navigation channels.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026
  • The fire has also forced evacuations at Spokane’s veterans’ hospital, water reclamation facility and waste-to-energy plant, city officials said.
    — Martin Goillandeau, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of forced
Verb
  • And then there’s the annual plowing of millions in DWP surplus dollars into the City Hall piggy bank, which convinces ratepayers they’re being fleeced.
    — Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2026
  • At his sentencing in 2024, Bailyn, the prosecutor, described Lorquet as a greedy criminal who fleeced his country at one of its weakest moments in history.
    — Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 8 June 2026
Definition of fleeced

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Cite this Entry

“Extorted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extorted. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of extorted for Spanish Speakers

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