Blackmail

Definition: Blackmail

Blackmail

Noun

1. Extortion of money by threats to divulge discrediting information.

Verb

1. Exert pressure on someone through threats.

2. Obtain through threats.

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "blackmail" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1380. (references)

Law

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Synonyms: Blackmail

Booty

Noun: booty, spoil, plunder, prize, loot, swag, pickings; spolia opima, prey; blackmail; stolen goods.

Reward

Douceur, bribe; hush money, smart money; blackmail, extortion; carcelage; solatium.

Stealing

Spoliation, plunder, pillage; sack, sackage; rapine, brigandage, foray, razzia, rape, depredation, raid; blackmail.

Plunder, pillage, rifle, sack, loot, ransack, spoil, spoliate, despoil, strip, sweep, gut, forage, levy blackmail, pirate, pickeer, maraud, lift cattle, poach; smuggle, run; badger; bail up, hold up, stick up; bunco, bunko, filibuster.

Blackmail, extortion, shakedown, Black Hand.

Crosswords: Blackmail

Bottom line, she tries to blackmail me, I'll drop her out a higher window (Batman Returns; writing credit: Bob Kane; Daniel Waters)

Jury duty, jury duty, jury duty, blackmail, pink slip, jury duty, jury duty (How the Grinch Stole Christmas; writing credit: Jeffrey Price)

Blackmail! Oh, that's a great idea (Nine to Five; writing credit: Colin Higgins)

It's blackmail. (Malcolm in the Middle; writing credit: Daniel Frenette)

If this is blackmail come and say it (The Omen; writing credit: David Seltzer)

Blackmail (1965)

Triple Blackmail (1955)

House of Blackmail (1953)

Blackmail (1947)

Sound Test for Blackmail (1929)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• Blackmail (reference)

• Blackmail and Lace (reference)

• George Eliot and Blackmail (reference)

• Ill-Gotten Gains: Evasion, Blackmail, Fraud, and Kindred Puzzles of the Law (reference)

• Nuclear Blackmail and Nuclear Balance (reference)

  (more book examples)

Theater & Movies

• Blackmail (1929)/Easy Virtue (reference)

• Blackmail (reference)

• Blackmail (1929) (reference)

  (more DVD examples; more video examples)

Music

• Blackmail Starters Kit (reference)

• Four Wall Blackmail (reference)

  (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

M.F. Keiter "blackmail" document - power of attorney. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Economic History

Hungary

The communists ultimately undermined the coalition regime by discrediting leaders of rival parties and through terror, blackmail, and framed trials. (references)

Human Rights

Iraq

Security forces also reportedly sexually assaulted both government officials and opposition members in order to blackmail them into compliance. (references)

Nigeria

There were reports that Imo State prison officials work with some pretrial detainees to blackmail those who knowingly or unknowingly purchased stolen goods from the detainees. (references)

Worker Rights

Turkmenistan

The penalty for involvement of a minor in prostitution or using force, threat, or blackmail to involve someone in prostitution is 3 to 8 years' imprisonment. (references)

Tajikistan

Blackmail is employed commonly in the country's conservative society-nearly half of the trafficked women in IOM's survey reported extortion by local officials upon return to the country. (references)

India

Victims of trafficking are subject to threats including emotional blackmail, violence, and confinement, as well as the threat of apprehension by authorities, detention, prosecution and deportation. (references)

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Expression using "blackmail": To levy blackmail. Additional references.

Ending with "blackmail": b-blackmail, video-blackmail.

Albanian

bëj shantazh, shantazh (chantage, racketeering), kërcënoj (browbeat, bulldoze, denounce, impend, menace, threaten), kërcënim (chantage, commination, denouncement, imminence, intimidation, menace, saltation, threat, threatening). (various references)

Arabic 

‏هدده بالأبتزاز, ‏المال المبتز بالتهديد, ‏الإبتزاز التهديدي, ‏إبتزاز (exaction, extortion, hustle, racket, shakedown), ‏إبتز (carry favor, carry favour, diddle, exact, extort, outdistance, pump, squeeze out, sting, swindle). (various references)

Bulgarian 

шантаж, пари получени чрез изнудване, изнудване (exaction, extortion, gouge, racket, ramp, shakedown). (various references)

Chinese 

敲诈 (Blackmailed, Blackmailing). (various references)

Czech

vydírat (extort, racket), vydírání (chantage, extortion). (various references)

Danish

pengeafpresning (exaction, extortion), afpresning (chantage). (various references)

Dutch

chantage (chantage), afpersing (exaction, extortion), afdreiging (extorsion). (various references)

Farsi 

تهدید (Menace, Threat), رشوه (Bribe, Bribery), باتهدیدازکسی چیزی طلبیدن , باج سبیل . (various references)

Finnish

kiristys (extortion, strain). (various references)

French

chantage. (various references)

German

Erpressung (exaction, extortion), erpressen (extort, suppress, to extort). (various references)

Greek 

εκβιάζω (exact, extort, hijack, shake down), εκβιασμός (chantage). (various references)

Hebrew 

סחיטת כספים (racket, shakedown), סחט� ות (chantage, extortion). (various references)

Hungarian

zsarolás (black rents, chantage, extortion, racket, racketeering), zsarol (racketeer, to blackmail). (various references)

Indonesian

pemerasan (exploitation, extortion), memeras (extort). (various references)

Italian

ricatto (chantage, extorsion). (various references)

Japanese Kanji 

恐喝　 (threat), 恐喝 (threat), 強請 (extortion, persistent demand). (various references)

Japanese Katakana 

きょうせい (coercion, compulsion, correction, enforcement, extortion, great, lovely voice, low singing voice, magnificent, obligation, paragenesis, persistent demand, reform, remedy, splendid, student teacher, symbiosis, training), きょうかつ (intimidation, menace, threat), �"うせい (combined, composite, composition, compound, extortion, extravagance, hardness, luxury, magnificence, mixed, persistent demand, rigidity, synthesis, synthetic). (various references)

Korean 

공갈죄. (various references)

Manx

dooal (nigrescent), cur fo dooal. (various references)

Pig Latin

ackmailblay.(various references)

Portuguese

extorsão (exaction, extortion, racket, rape, robbery, spoliation), chantagem (chantage, extorsion). (various references)

Romanian

şantaja (ramp), şantaj (racket). (various references)

Russian 

шантажировать шантаж, шантажировать, шантаж (chantage, intimidation, racket), вымогательство (exaction, extortion, protection, shakedown). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

ucenjivati (graft), uceniti (bulldoze), ucena (extortion, graft, ransom, reward). (various references)

Spanish

chantaje (chantage, racket, shakedown). (various references)

Swedish

utpressning (chantage, exaction, extortion, racketeering, racquet, shakedown), utpressa (extort). (various references)

Thai

หักหลัง (double-cross). (various references)

Turkish

para sızdırmak (bleed, bleed smb., clean out, gouge, shake down, squeeze, tap, touch), şantajla koparılan para, şantaj yapmak (racketeer), şantaj (blackmailing, duress, racket, racketeering, shakedown). (various references)

Ukrainian

шантажувати (bull-dose, intimidate, racketeer), шантаж (chantage, intimidation, racketeering, squeeze play). (various references)

Welsh

arian bygwth. (various references)

mal. (various references)

Derivations

Words beginning with "blackmail": blackmailed, blackmailer, blackmailers, blackmailing, blackmails. (additional references)

Misspellings

"Blackmail" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: blackmale, Blackmill, Blackwail, blockmail. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

-2 letters: alkalic, cambial, kalimba.

-3 letters: alkali, baalim, calami, camail, cambia, kalmia, labial, laical.

-4 letters: abaci, aback, alack, black, cabal, calla, claim, climb, kalam, kibla, labia, lamia, lilac, limba, llama, maill, malic.

-5 letters: alba, alma, amia, baal, back, bail, balk, ball, balm, bilk, bill, bima, blam, calk, call, calm, clam, iamb, ilka, kail, kami, kill, lack.

+1 letter: blackmails.

+2 letters: blackmailed, blackmailer.

+3 letters: blackmailers, blackmailing.