waterboarding

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noun

A torture technique in which the victim is immobilized, has towels or rags wrapped over their face, and has water poured onto them, causing them to experience the sensation of drowning.

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Meanings

waterboarding1

nounwaterboarding (usually uncountable, plural waterboardings)

plural waterboardings

  1. uncountableusuallyA torture technique in which the victim is immobilized, has towels or rags wrapped over their face, and has water poured onto them, causing them to experience the sensation of drowning.

waterboarding2

verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of waterboard

Origin

waterboarding · noun

From waterboard + -ing.

Full word history & related roots →

waterboarding · verb

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Cantonese 水刑
  • 水刑 (seoi² jing⁴)torture technique
Chinese Mandarin 水刑
  • 水刑 (shuǐxíng)torture technique
Dutch waterboarding
  • waterboardingtorture technique
Finnish vesikidutus
  • vesikidutustorture technique
French simulacre de noyade
  • simulacre de noyadetorture technique
Japanese ウォーターボーディング
  • ウォーターボーディング (wōtābōdingu)torture technique
Korean 물고문
  • 물고문 (mulgomun)torture technique
Polish waterboarding
  • waterboardingtorture technique
Portuguese afogamento simulado
  • afogamento simuladotorture technique
Russian пы́тка водо́й, вотербо́рдинг
  • пы́тка водо́й (pýtka vodój)torture technique
  • вотербо́рдинг (voterbórding)torture technique
Spanish submarino, tortura submarina
  • submarinotorture technique
  • tortura submarinatorture technique
  • waterboarding (wáterbordin)torture technique
  • submarineotorture technique
Swedish skendränkning
  • skendränkningtorture technique
Tamil நீர்ப்பீச்சு வதை
  • நீர்ப்பீச்சு வதை (nīrppīccu vatai)torture technique
Vietnamese trấn nước
  • trấn nướctorture technique
Cite this entry
APA

waterboarding. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterboarding

MLA

“waterboarding.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterboarding. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “waterboarding,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waterboarding.

Source: waterboarding on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.