mindscrew

English

Etymology

mind +‎ screw (“to play with; to meddle”)

Noun

mindscrew (plural mindscrews)

1. Something that destabilizes, confuses, or manipulates a person's mind.
   • 2009, Jay A. Fernandez, "Abrams making a name for himself, but it's not Steven Spielberg just yet", The Hollywood Reporter, 12 May 2009:

     It's in television that Abrams, arguably more than Spielberg, has nudged the medium forward, with "Felicity," then "Alias" and finally the mindscrew of "Lost."

   • For more examples of usage of this term, see the citations page.

Synonyms

• brainfuck (vulgar), headfuck (vulgar), mindfuck (vulgar)

Verb

mindscrew (third-person singular simple present mindscrews, present participle mindscrewing, simple past and past participle mindscrewed)

1. To destabilize, confuse, or manipulate a person's mind.
   • 1997, Howard Swindle, Trespasses: Portraits of a Serial Rapist, Penguin (1997), ISBN 9780140249712:

     About half the detectives thought his return to the old neighborhood was proof positive that he was out of control; still others believed he had ice water running through his veins, maybe even mindscrewing the cops by rubbing their noses in the fact they couldn't stop him even though they suspected who he was

   • For more examples of usage of this term, see the citations page.