contort

You don’t need to contort yourself to fit into someone else’s life, especially if that life doesn’t align with who you are or what you value.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

As much as the series is Mary’s bluestocking origin story, it also spells her freedom, which comes from no longer trying to impress or contort herself to fit the expectations of others.

From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026

This is a book of endless storytelling, as characters contort themselves to please the regime’s shifting narratives.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026

When it was retired last year, it was replaced with a newer, fully electric model developers said could contort its metal frame in even more ways.

From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2025

Christina looks away, and at first I think she is bashful, but then I see her face contort like he slapped her instead of complimented her.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

And when Maddie’s disorder tells her she needs to stay in control, she contorts all of this trendy pastel-colored, serif-typefaced wellness to her favor, using it to fuel her harmful compulsions.

From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026

Nevertheless, a cheeky portion of blue-green paint contorts itself into a standing position in the corner, fighting against the weight that urges the rest of the work Earthward.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

At one point, a dancer contorts herself as she carries Particle, tucked in a birdcage, across a room.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2024

Callahan, 13, contorts herself into a backbend as 7-year-old Hudson fiddles with a balloon and 10-year-old Keegan plays the piano.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 24, 2023

At the mention of my name, Peeta’s face contorts in effort.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

But outrage soon spread online, with screen-grabs and an AI video that contorted Thomas’s face into a grin.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

Davidson would have to be carried by her teammates and coaches to the bench, where her face contorted in pain as trainers examined her.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026

Acquiring the semiautonomous Danish territory would further elevate his claims to greatness and the status of legend in his own contorted reality.

From Salon ● Jan. 13, 2026

Natalie said at times Beth would spend hours lying with her body "contorted" into specific positions that enabled her to bear the agony.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2025

His fists were closed tight and his mouth was contorted with an angry sneer.

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers

I have watched videos of people doing cold plunges, giving themselves ear massages and contorting themselves into impossible stretches all in the name of fixing dysregulation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

But first and foremost, Bad Omens are gifted musicians, and whatever eldritch magic Sebastian wields onstage will always be bolstered by a serious band contorting metal, dark pop and electronic music.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026

In recent years, women have posted videos of their faces contorting in pain during an IUD removal or insertion to demonstrate how painful they are.

From Salon ● Nov. 25, 2024

Unbeknownst to the congressman, the recent kindergarten graduate ate up the C-SPAN camera, smiling, contorting, and making faces behind his dad’s back.

From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2024

Luke held Jack-Jack at arm’s length as the boy twisted, contorting his body back and forth like a wild animal.

From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss