to get something by force or threats, or with difficulty敲诈,勒索;强求
He had been extorting money from the old lady for years.他向那个老太太勒索钱财长达数年之久。
Police have not so far been able to extort a confession from the people accused of the bombing.到目前为止,警方一直未能让那些被指控制造爆炸案的人开口认罪。