恐喝

• 読み: きょうかつ
• ローマ字: kyokatsu
• 漢字の分解: 恐 (kyō/oso) — fear, dread; 喝 (katsu) — shout, intimidate
• 発音: /kʲoː.ka.t͡sɯ/

意味

Blackmail; extortion; the act of threatening someone to obtain money, property, or compliance through fear and intimidation.

A legal and criminal term describing coercion through threats of violence, exposure of secrets, or other intimidation. Constitutes a criminal offence under Japan's Penal Code. Distinct from 強盗 (robbery by direct force), in that the victim complies out of fear rather than being physically overpowered. Often appears in organised crime, corporate scandal, and digital crime contexts, including the increasingly common form of online blackmail using compromising images.

例文

1. 元交際相手が動画を盾に金銭を要求するという恐喝事件が増加している。
2. 彼は暴力団から恐喝され、長年にわたって多額の金を払い続けた。
3. 恐喝罪で逮捕された男は、事実を全面的に否認した。

使い方ガイド

場面: crime, law, organised crime, legal proceedings

トーン: negative

起源と歴史

From 恐 (fear/dread) and 喝 (shout/intimidate). The character 喝 originally referred to a shouted command or threatening cry, making the compound literally 'to intimidate through fearful shouting.'

文化的背景

時代: Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Universal