Noun: strappado stra'pey-dow or stra'paa-dow
- A form of torture in which the hands are tied behind a person's back and they are lifted off the ground by a rope tied to their wrists, then allowed to drop until their fall is checked with a jerk by the rope
"The strappado was a common torture method during the Inquisition";
- strapado
Derived forms: strappados
Encyclopedia: Strappado