What does blackmailed mean?
Blackmailed is the past tense and past participle of the verb 'blackmail', describing the act of coercing someone by making threats — most commonly threats to reveal embarrassing, incriminating, or private information unless demands such as money or favours are met. In everyday use it almost always appears in the passive voice, since victims rather than perpetrators tend to be the focus: a person might be blackmailed into silence, into resigning from a job, or into paying large sums. The word carries strongly negative connotations of vulnerability, fear, and abuse of power, and appears frequently in legal reporting, crime fiction, and political scandal coverage. Its history is surprisingly literal: 'mail' here derives from an old Scottish term meaning rent or tribute, so blackmail originally referred to protection money extorted from farmers by reivers on the Anglo-Scottish border centuries ago.
verb (past simple and past participle of 'blackmail')Past tense and past participle of 'blackmail': having coerced or been coerced into doing something through threats, especially of revealing damaging information or of harm.
- (of a person) subjected to coercion through threats, especially threats to reveal damaging information
- (past action) coerced someone in this way
"The executive was blackmailed into signing over the company's shares."
"For years she was blackmailed by a former colleague who threatened to expose her private emails."
"He admitted he had blackmailed two businessmen out of nearly half a million dollars."
The 'mail' in blackmail has nothing to do with letters — it comes from an old Scottish word for rent or tribute, paid by farmers to clan chiefs for protection.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of blackmailed
The verb derives from 'blackmail', formed in the 16th century from 'black' (evil or threatening) and 'mail', an old Scots word for rent or tribute. It originally described payments extorted from farmers along the Anglo-Scottish border by raiders in exchange for protection from pillage. Over time the sense broadened to any extortion through threats, especially threats to disclose secrets.
Related word forms
How blackmailed is actually used
Most often used in the passive ('was blackmailed'), reflecting that the victim is typically the focus of attention. The register is neutral — suitable for both news reporting and legal contexts.
Easily confused with blackmailed
'Blackballed' means being voted out or ostracized, while 'blackmailed' means being coerced by threats.