Duress

WORD OF THE DAY

duress / noun / dur-RESS

Definition
1 (law): forcible restraint or restriction
2 (law): compulsion by threat

Examples
"The ordinance ... was passed under duress by council members who believed that it would never be implemented."
— Gilbert Garcia, The San Antonio (Texas) Express-News Online, 20 May 2022

The Ukrainian cities of Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, in Luhansk, are increasingly under duress and could fall to Russian forces within a week, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
— Claire Parker, Washington Post, 11 June 2022

Did You Know?
Duress is most often paired with the word under to refer to force or threats meant to make someone do something.
For example, someone forced to sign a document signs it “under duress,” and a person held “under duress” is not free to leave but is being constrained, usually unlawfully.
Do not confuse being “under duress” with being “under stress,” which is a much more common occurrence.
Duress is a word of hardy stock. It has been a part of the English language since the 14th century and has a number of long-lived relatives.
 Duress itself came into Middle English through the Anglo-French duresce (meaning "hardness" or "severity"), which stems from Latin durus, meaning "hard."
Some obvious relatives of this robust root are durable, endure and obdurate (meaning "unyielding" or "hardened in feelings").
Some others are dour (meaning "harsh," "unyielding," or "gloomy") and the preposition during.