extortionate
Syllables: ex·tort·ion·ate/ɛkˈstɔːʃənət/US/ɛkˈstɔɹʃənət/
extortionate adjective: of, related to, or typifying extortion (“the practice of obtaining money or other property by the use of force or threats”).
Adjective
extortionate (comparative more extortionate, superlative most extortionate)
- Of, related to, or typifying extortion (“the practice of obtaining money or other property by the use of force or threats”).
- Now it is certain the Roman prieſts are not only ſeemingly very religious and really very extortionate, but are extortionate by means of religion, and make their prayers and maſſes the grand pretence for their exactions.1745, Thomas Newton, “Pharisaism and Popery Parallel’d, in a Sermon Preach’d in the Parish Church of St. Mary-le-Bow, and Grosvenor Chapel, on Occasion of the Present Rebellion in Scotland. October...
- It is said the daily increase in opium is owing to the negligence of officers in enforcing the interdicts? The laws and enactments are the means which extortionate underlings and worthless vagrants employ to benefit themselves; and the more complete the laws are, the greater and more numerous are...1854 April, F[rancis] O[rmand] J[onathan] Smith, “Art. II.—Experimental Legislation on the Opium Trade in China, and on the Liquor Trade of the United States.”, in Freeman Hunt, editor, Hunt’s...
- Synonyms:
- extortionable, extortionary, extortious, extortive, gripeful
- Greatly exceeding what is moderate or reasonable; exorbitant.
- [Y]ou get from farms ſo occupied, houſe lamb, veal, graſs lamb, a little mutton, and leſs beef, whilſt for either article ſeparately, or jointly, you are worked up to pay prices, not leſt than extortionate; […]1797, J. Mathews, “Respecting the Acres”, in Remarks on the Cause and Progress of the Scarcity and Dearness of Cattle, Swine Cheese, &. &. […], London: […] M. Ritchie; [s]old by N. Scarlett, […]...
- […] I have the satisfaction to think you are in good hands; M. Miret will not be extortionate: the first year's rent you already have in your savings; afterwards Miss Lucy must trust God, and herself.1853 January, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], “Faubourg Clotilde”, in Villette. […], volume III, London: Smith, Elder & Co., […], →OCLC, page 337
- Synonyms:
- extortionable, extortious, disproportionate, exorbiant, exorbitant, extravagant, inordinate, penal, sky-high, usurious
- Antonyms:
- modest, unextortionate
extortionate meaning in Malayalam
extortionate in Malayalam
- പിടിച്ചു പറിക്കുന്ന, തട്ടിപ്പറിക്കുന്ന, അന്യായമായ, അതിക്രൂരമായ
Examples of extortionate in a sentence
- If they are allowed to buy their own food from the natives they will impose on the raw savage, and frequently abuse their authority by making extortionate demands under threat of punishment.1914, C[hauncey] H[ugh] Stigand, “The Commencement of Administration”, in Administration in Tropical Africa, London: Constable & Company...
- The moneylenders – sometimes so extortionate that people pledged their slaves and sacred relics – were Uighurs from the west.2006, Colin Thubron, “The Capital”, in Shadow of the Silk Road, London: Chatto & Windus, →ISBN, page 20:
- The sands are firm and clean, and the hotels not unpleasantly extortionate.1902 August 15, “The Enquiry Bureau”, in The Photographic News. The Journal for Amateur Photographers, volume XLVI, number 346 (New...
- At an extortionate price, he had obtained a hire car to take him to Homs, and from there he intended to cross the border and proceed to Beirut.2013, Jack Higgins [pseudonym; Henry Patterson], chapter 1, in The Death Trade, New York, N.Y.: G[eorge] P[almer] Putnam’s Sons, published...
Synonyms of extortionate
- extortionary
- extortive
- gripeful
- disproportionate
- exorbiant
- exorbitant
- extravagant
- inordinate
- penal
- sky-high
3 more synonymsFewer synonyms
- usurious
- extortionable
- extortious
Antonyms
Forms of extortionate
| comparative | more extortionate |
|---|---|
| superlative | most extortionate |
Origin of extortionate
From extortion + -ate (adjective-forming suffix).
Words formed from extortionate
Questions about extortionate
- What does extortionate mean?
- Extortionate means of, related to, or typifying extortion (“the practice of obtaining money or other property by the use of force or threats”).
- What is extortionate in Malayalam?
- Extortionate in Malayalam is പിടിച്ചു പറിക്കുന്ന, തട്ടിപ്പറിക്കുന്ന, അന്യായമായ. See Extortionate meaning in Malayalam.
- How do you use extortionate in a sentence?
- If they are allowed to buy their own food from the natives they will impose on the raw savage, and frequently abuse their authority by making extortionate demands under threat of punishment.
- What part of speech is extortionate?
- Extortionate is an adjective.
- How do you pronounce extortionate?
- Extortionate is pronounced /ɛkˈstɔːʃənət/ (UK).
Words near extortionate in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: extortionate (page history and authors); extortionate (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-extortionate.wav.
Cite this entry: “extortionate.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/extortionate. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.