Word of the Day - 09/19/25
duress
/dʊ'rɛs/(n.): compulsory force or threat
He signed the confession under duress, fearing for his family's safety.
Word Origin
The word 'duress' originates from Old French 'duresse', meaning 'hardship' or 'severity'. This in turn comes from the Latin word 'durities', meaning 'hardness' or 'severity', which is derived from 'durus', meaning 'hard'. The core concept is related to being under hard or severe conditions, leading to its modern meaning of compulsion by threat or force.
Words with similar Latin origins include 'durable' (able to last, from 'durus' via Old French), 'endure' (to undergo hardship, from Latin 'indurare' meaning 'to harden', from 'in-' + 'durus'), and 'obdurate' (stubbornly resistant, from Latin 'obdurare' meaning 'to harden', from 'ob-' + 'durus').