as in squeezing
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
Relevance
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 extorting
The official reports into that incident show that Epstein initially told prison officials that his cellmate had tried to kill him after extorting him for money.
—
Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 8 Mar. 2026
There had been tension between Bo Nagar’s force and the local PDF units since last year over his BNRA fighters allegedly extorting money at road checkpoints.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
Hayley — who turns out to be a hooker who does secretarial admin on the side and not an executive assistant who occasionally threesomes — is extorting him for $750,000.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
The traveler confessed to extorting others to commit self-harm, the memo said.
—Curt Devine, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
Bandit gangs control entire districts, extorting protection money from communities in cash or kind, killing those that resist.
—Obi Anyadike, semafor.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Instead of extorting money to decrypt data in a company’s own system, an attacker can just threaten to release sensitive data if the ransom isn’t paid.
—Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
After a relative suffered an accident, the cops who responded ended up extorting money from him, Ramírez said.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2026
The couple allegedly asked customers’ family members to send original passports to them and then frequently refused to return the passports unless customers paid hundreds of dollars more, effectively extorting them, Ellison’s office said.
—Kristi Miller, Twin Cities, 22 Dec. 2025
Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 8 Mar. 2026
There had been tension between Bo Nagar’s force and the local PDF units since last year over his BNRA fighters allegedly extorting money at road checkpoints.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
Hayley — who turns out to be a hooker who does secretarial admin on the side and not an executive assistant who occasionally threesomes — is extorting him for $750,000.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
The traveler confessed to extorting others to commit self-harm, the memo said.
—Curt Devine, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
Bandit gangs control entire districts, extorting protection money from communities in cash or kind, killing those that resist.
—Obi Anyadike, semafor.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Instead of extorting money to decrypt data in a company’s own system, an attacker can just threaten to release sensitive data if the ransom isn’t paid.
—Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
After a relative suffered an accident, the cops who responded ended up extorting money from him, Ramírez said.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2026
The couple allegedly asked customers’ family members to send original passports to them and then frequently refused to return the passports unless customers paid hundreds of dollars more, effectively extorting them, Ellison’s office said.
—Kristi Miller, Twin Cities, 22 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extorting
Verb
-
The videos have pulled back the curtain on ingredient shifts across some of the company’s most recognizable products — and a surging cocoa market that’s squeezing the entire candy industry.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The Pios led 4-1 after a period and put the clamps down, methodically squeezing the clock and the Broncos’ hopes of a repeat title, a shift at a time.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Meyers is also accused of coercing the 15-year-old into recording the high school’s wrestling team, the complaint alleges.—
Brittany Kubicko,
NBC news,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Guevara and two colleagues, Mason and then-Detective Ernest Halvorson, orchestrated a frame-up by coercing one witness to identify Rios by beating him with a phone book and flashlight, and another by threatening to charge him with obstruction, according to the plaintiffs’ allegations.—
Jason Meisner,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
My brain was split every day of shooting between the exacting work of bunraku puppetry and the looseness of the playful improv.—
Emma Forgione,
Vulture,
31 Mar. 2026
-
In any context, everyone is justified in resisting or repelling any invasion of their person or property, extracting restitution or exacting punishment in response to an invasion, or helping someone else do the same.—
Connor Okeeffe,
Oc Register,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
That is what Emma is doing in this scene by talking to Mark, looking at the floor demurely, and wringing her hands precisely three (3) times.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
-
But the response should not be hand-wringing or name-calling.—
Reardon Sullivan,
Baltimore Sun,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The Heat did it by sitting in its zone defense for most of the night, slowing the 76ers and forcing them into 17 non-paint two-point shots.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The decision drew immediate fire from El-Sayed's primary opponents and national Democratic figures, forcing a rare public reckoning over how far the party should go to recapture young men who abandoned it in record numbers in 2024.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Companies bracing for higher energy costs are already wresting with tariffs, inflation and bigger labor costs.—
Christopher Rugaber,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Trotsky hurled items from the desk at Mercader before wresting the ice pick from his grip.—
Josh Ireland,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Extorting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extorting. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
