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extortio

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word extortio

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
c. 383–420 Jerome More words from the 4th century
Ultimate origin
Latin extorqueō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin torqueō
English torque
Latin extorqueō
Latin extortiō
English extortion
From the same root
Latin contorqueō ← torqueō
Latin dētorqueō ← torqueō
Latin distorqueō ← torqueō
Latin intorqueō ← torqueō
Latin obtorqueō ← torqueō
Latin retorqueō ← torqueō
Latin torculus ← torqueō
Latin tormentum ← torqueō
Latin torquis ← torqueō
Latin tortor ← torqueō
Latin tortūra ← torqueō
Latin tortus ← torqueō

Forms

extortio f (genitive extortiōnis); third declension[1][2] Medieval Latin usually spells it extorsio.[3][4]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin extorqueō (“to wrench out, extort”) + -tiō.[1][5] The verb is ex- and torqueō (“to twist”), which de Vaan derives from Proto-Indo-European *torkʷ-eie- (“to twist”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is a Late Latin word[2] first found in Jerome's commentary on Matthew, where those possessed by demons confess Christ not willingly but under the compulsion of necessity, necessitatis extortio.[1][7]

Semantic evolution

In Medieval Latin, mostly spelt extorsio, it is the forcing of payments or services, extortion, often of unjust taxes, and by metonymy the tax itself;[3][4] it is also a claim to an inheritance and, in medicine, a sprain.[3] English borrowed it as extorcioun about 1300,[5] and Italian estorsione comes from it.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 383–419/420 AD – Jerome uses it for compulsion.[1][7]
  • 1111 – An imperial document uses it for an extorted demand.[3]
  • c. 1300 – English borrows it as extorcioun.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin) Compulsion, constraint.[1][2]
  2. (Medieval Latin) Extortion, an exaction by force.[3][4]
  3. (Medieval Latin) A tax or levy.[3]
  4. (Medieval Latin) A sprain.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  2. ^ a b c d Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b c Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  7. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
Cite this entry

“Extortio.” Etymologically, 7 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/la/extortio. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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