The act or result of twisting something out of its normal shape, or an extreme twisted position of the body.
From Latin 'contortio', derived from 'contortus' (twisted). The suffix '-tion' converts the verb concept into a noun representing an action or state.
The word 'contortion' was popularized in English during the Victorian era when circus acts became major entertainment, and flexible performers were celebrated as medical oddities—today we know their flexibility comes from years of training and natural variation in joint structure.
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