duress
Let’s hope you’re never denied food and sleep and forced to sign a confession, but if you are, that's called being under duress. Threats and harsh treatment meant to make you do something you don’t want to do is duress.
The word duress came into English through French, with origins in the Latin word duritia, which means “hardness.” First used to describe harsh or cruel treatment, duress soon took on the additional meaning of forcing someone to do something, usually through threats. Duress is typically used with the word under, as in a suspect who only signs a confession because he is under duress.
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compulsory force or threat“confessed under duress”type of:forcea powerful effect or influence
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Vocabulary lists containing duress
Looking to build your vocabulary? Then practice this list of 300 "hard words" — the kind that used to be tested on the SAT before 2016. If you're a high school student prepping for the SAT, check out Vocabulary.com's Roadmap to the SAT, which focuses on the vocabulary you'll need to ace today's SAT test.
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