To compel or demand something by means of threats or intimidation.
He felt a cold dread creep up his spine. The man's voice was a low growl as he said, "Give me the money, or your family will pay." He knew the man was trying to extort him, to force him to give up everything he had through fear.
The shadowy figure pressed the worn ledger against my chest. "You will pay me for this information, or everyone will know about your dealings with the Glow Worm Colony." He didn't need to say it again. The threat was clear; he would extort a hefty sum from me by making me afraid.
The shadowy figure loomed, his voice a low growl. He told the small shopkeeper that if the money wasn't handed over by morning, his whole market stall would mysteriously vanish. He knew he could extort the cash by making the man fear losing everything he had worked for.
The grumpy badger, with a fierce glare, decided to extort cookies from the picnic basket. He growled at the ants, threatening to tickle them with his nose if they didn't hand over the sugary treats. The ants, very scared, quickly gave him all the cookies.
The grumpy badger, Bartholomew, tried to extort all the shiny pebbles from the squirrel family. He puffed his cheeks and stomped his tiny feet, threatening to tickle their noses with his tail if they didn't share. The squirrels, however, just giggled and offered him a wilted dandelion instead.
The masked figure lunged, shoving the terrified clerk against the counter. "Give me all the money, or your family gets hurt," he hissed, the threat chilling the air. He intended to extort the entire day's earnings through sheer terror.
The shadowy figure threatened to expose the librarian's secret stamp collection to the public if she didn't give him the rare first edition. He wanted to extort the book, leaving her no choice but to hand over the precious volume to protect her reputation.
The shadowy figure loomed, his voice a low growl, demanding the ancient map. He threatened to expose Elias's secret research, to extort the delicate artifact that held the key to their civilization's survival. Elias felt a cold dread grip him.
The rogue squirrel, notorious for its acorn hoarding, began to extort peanuts from the park-goers. It'd chatter menacingly, flick its tail, and stare down anyone who dared deny its furry demands for snacks, leaving them nervously surrendering their lunch to the tiny, bushy-tailed bandit.
Barnaby the badger, fueled by lukewarm tea and an alarming amount of biscuits, tried to extort the last crumb from Fiona the fox. He puffed his cheeks, bared his tiny teeth, and threatened to reveal her secret obsession with polka-dotted socks. Fiona, unimpressed, simply offered him another biscuit.
The shadowy figure cornered me in the alley, his voice a low growl. He wanted my valuables, and the glint in his eye made it clear he’d hurt me if I didn't comply. He meant to extort everything I had, leaving me with nothing.
The merchant, cornered in the dusty alley, felt a cold dread grip him as the scarred enforcer pressed his advantage. The enforcer's gaze promised ruin if the payment wasn't made, a clear attempt to extort the entire week's earnings with veiled threats of a broken leg and a trashed shop.
The shadowy figure cornered the inventor, his voice a low growl. "Your schematics, or I'll reveal your little secret. You will hand over the plans, or face ruin." He aimed to extort the crucial designs, leveraging fear to gain control.
The badger, notorious for his meticulously organized sock drawer, began to extort my prize-winning petunias. He threatened to publicly reveal my embarrassing secret: a penchant for wearing mismatched argyle. Faced with such dire consequences, I reluctantly handed over the floral bounty, hoping this ordeal would soon dissipate.
The notorious badger king, Bartholomew Fluffbutt, threatened to release embarrassing photos of the council of squirrels' acorn stashes. He intended to extort their most prized pinecones for his personal, albeit tiny, hoard. The squirrels, mortified, reluctantly agreed to his nutty demands.
The shadowy figure cornered the shopkeeper, his voice a low growl. "The usual tribute, or your establishment will suffer irreparable damage." He knew the fear he instilled; he could extort what he wanted through palpable menace.
The cartel's lieutenant, a man whose gaze could curdle milk, threatened to unleash ruin upon the independent artisan's rare bioluminescent fungus cultivation if payment wasn't promptly rendered. He sought to extort a hefty sum, leveraging the precarious future of their unique livelihood, leaving the cultivator in utter despair.
The artifact collector, cornered in his dimly lit atelier, felt a cold dread as the operative outlined his demands. This wasn't a negotiation; the operative's veiled threats to expose a provenance discrepancy, fabricated though it was, were clearly intended to extort a hefty sum for his silence.
The nefarious squirrel, a veritable arboreal brigand, attempted to extort acorns from the unsuspecting blue jay by brandishing a particularly sharp twig and chattering menacingly. Its preposterous pilfering plan, however, was unceremoniously thwarted by the jay's vociferous squawks and a well-aimed peck.
Barnaby, a notoriously acquisitive truffle pig, would often extort plump forest mushrooms from his less robust compatriots. With a theatrical snort and a menacingly elevated snout, he’d convey his intent to expose their clandestine hoarding habits to the notoriously peckish badger patrols, thus compelling their reluctant contributions to his already prodigious larder.
Advanced — Less frequent words that stretch an upper-level vocabulary.