contort

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /kənˈtɔrt/ UK /kənˈtɔːt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to twist or bend out of normal shape, often violently

Pain made his face contort into a grotesque grimace.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to twist or bend out of... twist distort deform warp writhe gnarl wrench

Opposites

straighten unbend

Word family

Forms contortionist

Derived forms contortioncontortedcontortionist

Related forms torturetorsiontortuous retort

Etymology

From Latin contortus, past participle of contorquere ('to twist together, whirl'), from con- ('together') + torquere ('to twist').

contorquere Latin torquere Latin *terkw- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# contort

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /kənˈtɔrt/
**IPA (UK):** /kənˈtɔːt/

## Meanings
1. to twist or bend out of normal shape, often violently

## Examples
- Pain made his face contort into a grotesque grimace.

## Synonyms
- twist
- distort
- deform
- warp
- writhe
- gnarl
- wrench

## Antonyms
- straighten
- unbend

## Derived Forms
- contortion
- contorted
- contortionist

## Related Forms
- torture
- torsion
- tortuous
- retort

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: contorquere
- Root: torquere
- Root: *terkw-

## Etymology
From Latin contortus, past participle of contorquere ('to twist together, whirl'), from con- ('together') + torquere ('to twist').

## AI Etymology
Contort is from Latin contortus, past participle of contorquere ('to twist together, whirl'), from con- ('together') + torquere ('to twist'). The ancestry passes through Latin contorquere, Latin torquere, and Proto-Indo-European *terkw-. The prefix con- adds togetherness, combination, or intensification where the Latin formation gives it that value, helping to explain the word's surface structure. In present use as a verb, it means "to twist or bend out of normal shape, often violently", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Related words include torture, torsion, tortuous, and retort; derived forms include contortion, contorted, and contortionist.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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