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force
- Main Entry:
- 1force
- Pronunciation:
-
\ˈfȯrs\
- Function:
- noun
- Etymology:
- Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *fortia, from Latin fortis strong
- Date:
- 14th century
1 a (1): strength or energy exerted or brought to bear : cause of motion or change : active power <the forces of nature> <the motivating force in her life> (2)capitalized —used with a number to indicate the strength of the wind according to the Beaufort scale <a Force 10 hurricane> b: moral or mental strength c: capacity to persuade or convince <the force of the argument>2 a: military strength b (1): a body (as of troops or ships) assigned to a military purpose (2)plural : the whole military strength (as of a nation) c: a body of persons or things available for a particular end <a labor force> <the missile force> d: an individual or group having the power of effective action <join forces to prevent violence> <a force in politics> eoften capitalized : police force —usually used with the3: violence, compulsion, or constraint exerted upon or against a person or thing4 a: an agency or influence that if applied to a free body results chiefly in an acceleration of the body and sometimes in elastic deformation and other effects b: any of the natural influences (as electromagnetism, gravity, the strong force, and the weak force) that exist especially between particles and determine the structure of the universe5: the quality of conveying impressions intensely in writing or speech <stated the objectives with force>
— force·less \-ləs\ adjective — in force 1: in great numbers <picnickers were out in force>2: valid, operative <the ban remains in force>
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