du·ress
Audio Help [doo-res, dyoo-, doo
r-is, dyoo
r-] Pronunciation Key
Audio Help [doo-res, dyoo-, doo
r-is, dyoo
r-] Pronunciation Key –noun
| 1. | compulsion by threat or force; coercion; constraint. |
| 2. | Law. such constraint or coercion as will render void a contract or other legal act entered or performed under its influence. |
| 3. | forcible restraint, esp. imprisonment. |
[Origin: 1275–1325; ME duresse < MF duresse, -esce, -ece < L dūritia hardness, harshness, oppression, equiv. to dūr(us) hard + -itia -ice
]
] —Synonyms 1. intimidation, pressure, bullying, browbeating.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
duress
To learn more about duress visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| du·ress
Audio Help (dŏŏ-rěs', dyŏŏ-) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English duresse, harshness, compulsion, from Old French durece, hardness, from Latin dūritia, from dūrus, hard; see deru- in Indo-European roots.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
duress
c.1320, "harsh or severe treatment," from O.Fr. duresse, from L. duritia "hardness," from durus "hard" (see endure). Sense of "forcible restraint" is from c.1430; that of "coercion" is from 1596.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| duress | |
noun | |
| compulsory force or threat; "confessed under duress" |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
Duress
Du"ress\, n. [OF. duresse, du?, hardship, severity, L. duritia, durities, fr. durus hard. See Dure.]1. Hardship; constraint; pressure; imprisonment; restraint of liberty. The agreements . . . made with the landlords during the time of slavery, are only the effect of duress and force. --Burke. 2. (Law) The state of compulsion or necessity in which a person is influenced, whether by the unlawful restrain of his liberty or by actual or threatened physical violence, to incur a civil liability or to commit an offense.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Duress
Du*ress"\, v. t. To subject to duress. "The party duressed." --Bacon.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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