Tort
/tɔːrt/noun
A wrongful act or civil wrong that causes someone else harm or loss.
Did you know?Tort comes from Latin *tortus* (“twisted”), from *torquēre* (“to twist”), the same root behind words like *torment* and *torque*—as if wrongdoing itself was imagined as something bent out of shape.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*terkʷ-
“to twist, turn”
Latin
Latin
torquēre
“to twist, turn, wrench”
Latin
Latin
tortus
“twisted, distorted”
Old French
Old French
tort
“wrong, injury, injustice”
Middle English
English
tort
“a wrong or injury; legal wrong”
Modern English
English
tort
“a civil wrong recognized by law”