1
as in accidental
not made or done willingly or by choice
my long stays on the sidelines during our football games were strictly involuntary
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in automatic
done instantly and without conscious thought or decision
breathing is involuntary
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in compulsory
forcing one's compliance or participation by or as if by law
the abolition of involuntary servitude by civilized society
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of involuntary
Together with the Civil War Amendments, outlawing slavery and involuntary servitude and ensuring all citizens equal protection of the laws and due process of law, the Bill of Rights stands as a constant guardian of individual liberty.
—
Liz Tracey, JSTOR Daily, 25 Aug. 2025
Voluntary and involuntary staff departures in recent years have tanked web traffic and left it with a skeleton crew.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2025
The petition for an order of involuntary commitment was approved in Sebastian County Circuit Court the following day, according to the motion, which includes a copy of the order.
—Arkansas Online, 18 Aug. 2025
Currently, the involuntary commitment law only deals with people suffering from mental illness and only allows them to be held for evaluation.
—Chris Wade, The Washington Examiner, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for involuntary
Liz Tracey, JSTOR Daily, 25 Aug. 2025
Voluntary and involuntary staff departures in recent years have tanked web traffic and left it with a skeleton crew.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2025
The petition for an order of involuntary commitment was approved in Sebastian County Circuit Court the following day, according to the motion, which includes a copy of the order.
—Arkansas Online, 18 Aug. 2025
Currently, the involuntary commitment law only deals with people suffering from mental illness and only allows them to be held for evaluation.
—Chris Wade, The Washington Examiner, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for involuntary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for involuntary
Adjective
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Police determined the injury was accidental and not child abuse.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
10 Sep. 2025
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The sound does much of the work in action sequences obscured by blinding snowstorms and flashing emergency lights, punctuated by creative acts of accidental self-harm that save our protagonists from certain death more than once.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But those ninth innings had started to become less automatic, and Counsell trusts relievers such as Brad Keller (Friday’s eighth-inning guy) and Andrew Kittredge (Friday’s closer) in just about any situation.—
Patrick Mooney,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
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That includes supporting a ban on semiautomatic automatic weapons and high capacity magazines.—
Mark Vancleave,
Twin Cities,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The audience demographics at these two SoCal shows was certainly interesting… a mixture of aspirational and actual Englishness, united in a tempory new world order marked by seemingly compulsory bucket hats.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
8 Sep. 2025
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The plan comes a decade after the government suspended compulsory duty and includes the possibility of reintroducing conscription if recruitment targets are not met, according to Reuters.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Mid-century collective behavior theories considered social movements to be nonrational, spontaneous events occurring during moments of social and cultural breakdown.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
10 Sep. 2025
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This bill would entrench West Oakland and many other neighborhoods across the state as sacrifice zones, forcing us to deal with toxic chemicals and spontaneous fires for the sake of corporate profits.—
Brian Beveridge,
Mercury News,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The money would provide for beginning mechanical removal of the algae mass in the most problematic areas and setting up test areas for the effectiveness of algicides, Miller said.—
Keith Matheny,
Freep.com,
8 Sep. 2025
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And while ultrasound techniques can modulate the activity of neurons by delivering gentle mechanical pulses that influence how cells send signals, current systems have struggled to reach deeper areas of the brain with sufficient precision—until now.—
Hannah Millington,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Most Americans support common-sense measures like background checks, mandatory training, licensing, restrictions on magazine size, and safe-storage rules.—
John J. Donohue,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
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Florida’s state legislature needs to get involved to make other mandatory school vaccines optional,including those that protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, measles, mumps and rubella.—
Michelle Marchante,
Miami Herald,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Years of underinvestment, rising costs, and a board unwilling to confront structural issues have destroyed value.—
Jim Osman,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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The church’s attorneys, for their part, said in their latest filing that the victims’ side appears unwilling to negotiate.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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There are varying depths of coma, however, and some people may still have some reflex responses.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
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Beyond that, though, the history of the past couple of years shows that NVDA's stock move isn't a reliable directional driver of the broad tape beyond the reflex reaction.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
26 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Involuntary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/involuntary. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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