as in to coerce
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
public opinion compelled her to fire her scandal-plagued aide
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of compel
Trump officials claim that Biden didn’t use enough force to compel the Houthis to stop.
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Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2025
The president's criticism of Berlin has compelled Germany to increase funding for its military forces and infrastructure, which critics say are in a bad state of affairs.
—Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2025
The Annual Credit Report is compelled by federal law to offer free yearly credit reports from all three major credit bureaus.
—Víctor Rosario, Sacbee.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Manufacturers are not rushing to move plants to the US, as the tariffs would, in theory, compel them to.
—Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for compel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compel
Verb
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She was sentenced in federal court in Boston to four years in prison for charges of coercing people to engage in prostitution and money laundering conspiracy.—
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Experts say this is a potentially serious counterintelligence problem that could allow foreign intelligence services to gain insight into a target’s social network or even identify individuals who could be paid or coerced to act against them.—
Verb
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Her story forced the country to confront a flawed legal system and the cultural discomfort with women who challenged it.—
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The move, which has already begun, is again forcing the displacement of Palestinian civilians who returned to their homes in northern and southern Gaza strip after the ceasefire was announced in January.—
Verb
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Is he contractually obligated to win all the fights?—
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The payment to the city needs to be fulfilled by March 30, when the city is obligated to close its books for the year.—
Verb
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As a signatory of the Rome Statute, which established the court in 2002, Hungary is obliged to arrest Netanyahu.—
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The 125 states that recognize the ICC -- including France, Germany and the United Kingdom -- are obliged to arrest anyone with an outstanding arrest warrant who enters their territory.—
Verb
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Ultimately, the league’s decision-making on NBA expansion will be driven by a combination of market size, media presence, economic factors, and ownership interest.—
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Senate fiscal hawks are making a steep set of demands in negotiations over the debt ceiling, driving an even harder bargain than the House rabble-rousers who won $2 trillion in cuts.—
Cite this Entry
“Compel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compel. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
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