Duress Definition
do͝o-rĕs, dyo͝o-
noun
Imprisonment.
Webster's New World
Compulsion by threat or violence; coercion.
Confessed under duress.
American Heritage
Constraint or difficulty caused by misfortune.
American Heritage
The use of force or threats; compulsion.
A confession signed under duress.
Webster's New World
A criminal defense for an act undertaken under threat of serious bodily harm.
His defense was duress.
American Heritage
verb
To put under duress; to pressure.
Someone was duressing her.
The small nation was duressed into giving up territory.
Wiktionary
Origin of Duress
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Middle English duresse harshness, compulsion from Old French durece hardness from Latin dūritia from dūrus hard deru- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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From Old French duresse, from Latin duritia (“hardness”), from durus (“hard”)
From Wiktionary
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