noun
tort
TORT/tɔːrt/
A civil wrong, other than a breach of contract, for which someone can be held legally liable.
The broken-window damage leads the owner to consult a lawyer about a possible tort.
Etymology
Physical twisting became figurative wrongness: 'twisted' supplied a noun meaning injustice or a wrong. English narrowed this to a breach of duty giving someone a right to seek damages.
In context
if a capitalist is polluting your backyard and causing that harm you should sue them so therefore we do need a tort system
More examples
- Negligence that causes an injury can be a tort.
- The attorney handles cases involving torts such as defamation.
- A breach of contract alone is not a tort.
Forms
tort · torts
tortious adjective — Constituting a civil wrong under law.