blackmail
noun
black·mail
ˈblak-ˌmāl 
1
: a tribute anciently exacted on the Scottish border by plundering chiefs in exchange for immunity from pillage
2
a
: extortion or coercion by threats especially of public exposure or criminal prosecution
b
: the payment that is extorted
blackmail
transitive verb
blackmailer
noun
Examples of blackmail in a Sentence
She was a victim of blackmail.
The servant extorted blackmail from her employer.
Recent Examples on the Web
The app surged from 50,000 to 100,000 downloads in a single week despite red flags in user reviews about harassment and blackmail.
—
Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 11 Mar. 2025
An adults-only drama about an exotic dancer's entanglements with a rich family (and its many secrets), Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black is dark, violent, and scandalous, with storylines revolving around murder, blackmail, and human trafficking.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 11 Mar. 2025
Carroll then claimed Epstein was an Israeli intelligence operative, running blackmail operations on Americans.
—William Lambers, Newsweek, 9 Mar. 2025
Chaos ensues as the psychopath blackmails and manipulates key critics — including a police commissioner — and demands all fall in line with his authoritarian ideas, or else.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blackmail
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Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 11 Mar. 2025
An adults-only drama about an exotic dancer's entanglements with a rich family (and its many secrets), Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black is dark, violent, and scandalous, with storylines revolving around murder, blackmail, and human trafficking.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 11 Mar. 2025
Carroll then claimed Epstein was an Israeli intelligence operative, running blackmail operations on Americans.
—William Lambers, Newsweek, 9 Mar. 2025
Chaos ensues as the psychopath blackmails and manipulates key critics — including a police commissioner — and demands all fall in line with his authoritarian ideas, or else.
—Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blackmail
Cite this Entry
“Blackmail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blackmail. Accessed 17 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
blackmail
noun
black·mail
ˈblak-ˌmāl
1
: the act of forcing a person to do or pay something especially by a threat to reveal a secret
2
: something (as money) obtained through blackmail
blackmail
verb
blackmailer
noun
Etymology
from black (the color) and mail "rent, payment," from Old English māl "agreement," of Norse origin
Word Origin
The word blackmail has no connection at all with the postal system. In the 16th and part of the 17th centuries, the area along the border between England and Scotland was not usually protected by the officials on either side. Landholders were beset not only by outlaws but also by their own chieftains, who told them that in return for payment they would not be raided. In Scotland mail means "rent" or "payment." This word comes ultimately from an Old Norse word māl meaning "agreement" or "speech." The mail delivered by a letter carrier originally meant "sack, bag," and referred to the sack in which letters were carried; it is hence completely distinct in origin from the mail of blackmail.
Legal Definition
blackmail
noun
black·mail
ˈblak-ˌmāl
: extortion or coercion by often written threats especially of public exposure, physical harm, or criminal prosecution
blackmail
transitive verb
blackmailer
noun
-ˌmā-lər
Etymology
originally, payment extorted from farmers in Scotland and northern England, from black + dialectal mail payment, rent
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