compulsory

adjective

com·​pul·​so·​ry kəm-ˈpəls-rē 

-ˈpəl-sə-

1

: mandatory, enforced

compulsory retirement

2

: coercive, compelling

compulsory measures

compulsorily

kəm-ˈpəls-rə-lē 

-ˈpəl-sə-

adverb

Synonyms

• mandatory
• required
• incumbent
• necessary

Examples of compulsory in a Sentence

To free the mind and the heart from compulsory religious confession and observance was good for all three interested parties: the state, the church and the people. —Jon Meacham, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2009

So he wants a private life and no photographs and nobody to know his home address. I can dig it, I can relate to that (but, like he should try it when it's compulsory instead of a free-choice option). —Salman Rushdie, New York Times Book Review, 14 Jan. 1990

He began to resent the compulsory attendance at the boring factory meetings. —James Reston, Jr., Time, 28 Nov. 1988

compulsory retirement at age 70

Recent Examples on the Web

The Hopkins clinic fit squarely into the desire of these movements to offer Americans alternatives to the rigid gender roles and compulsory heterosexuality of the Cold War era. —Time, 7 Aug. 2025

The violent clashes in the state’s megacity Mumbai earlier this month were sparked by the regional government’s controversial decision to make Hindi a compulsory third language in public primary schools. —Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 26 July 2025

The Scandinavian country is seeking to increase the number of young people in the military by extending compulsory enlistment to women for the first time. —James Brooks, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025

Yeshiva leaders were told to have parents find other ways of educating their children to satisfy the state’s compulsory education law, while their schools were slated to lose public funds. —Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 21 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French compulsorie "compelling, coercive," borrowed from Medieval Latin compulsōrius, derivative, with -tōrius, deverbal adjective suffix (originally forming derivatives from agent nouns ending in -tōr-, -tor) of Latin compellere "to drive together, force to go, force (to a view, course of action)" (with -s- from past participle compulsus) — more at compel

First Known Use

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

compulsory

adjective

com·​pul·​so·​ry kəm-ˈpəls-(ə-)rē 

1

: required by or as if by law

compulsory education

2

: having the power of forcing someone to do something

a compulsory law

Legal Definition

compulsory

adjective

com·​pul·​so·​ry kəm-ˈpəl-sə-rē 

1

: required or compelled by law : mandatory, obligatory

compulsory arbitration

compulsory insurance

specifically : required to be brought or asserted in a pleading because of having arisen from the transaction or occurrence that is the subject of litigation

a compulsory counterclaim

compulsory reconvention

compare elective, permissive

2

: using compulsion : compelling

compulsory measures

compulsorily

-sə-rə-lē 

adverb