<p>‘Tortured phrases’ (TPs) are a linguistic misrepresentation of established jargon or technical terms, and can thus be considered to be factual errors. By synonymizing jargon, TPs reduce the clarity of the scientific message. Given their unique nature, a growing literature on TPs is emerging, a summary of which is provided in this article. Supplementing this growing body of evidence, a curiously unique dataset is presented, namely, of ‘sodium hypocrite’, which is meant to represent sodium hypochlorite. Examples of TPs in the biological sciences are introduced. Papers that contain ‘tortured phrases’ should ideally be corrected to accurately represent the correct scientific terms they are currently misrepresenting. This responsibility falls on the shoulders of authors, editors and publishers.</p>