coercion

noun co·er·cion \ kō-ˈər-zhən , -shən \

|Updated on: 6 Aug 2018

Examples: coercion in a Sentence

Definition of coercion

: the act, process, or power of coercing

They used coercion to obtain the confession.

Examples of coercion in a Sentence

a promise obtained by coercion is never binding

Recent Examples of coercion from the Web

Just a few weeks after he was inaugurated in 2015, Rauner signed an executive order prohibiting the coercion of union fees from government workers who opted out of the unions.

— john kass, chicagotribune.com, "Gov. Rauner’s legacy rests with the U.S. Supreme Court," 22 June 2018
Isn’t international politics really all about threats and coercion?

— andrew kydd, Washington Post, "Promises on North Korea are easy to make but hard to keep. Here’s why.," 7 June 2018
One bars the coercion of votes or donations from state or federal employees.

— andrew keiper, Fox News, "Kentucky politician's staffers forced to make campaign donations, ex-employees claim," 22 May 2018
Maybe there’s an argument for letting this bad actor off the hook in return for China ending its theft of U.S. intellectual property and its coercion of U.S. companies to share technology and trade secrets.

— james freeman, WSJ, "Is There Any Art in Trump’s China Deal?," 14 May 2018
Prajwala estimates that 200,000 women and children in India are forced into prostitution every year through threat and coercion.

— roli srivastava, The Christian Science Monitor, "South India's 'Tollywood' film industry addresses sex trafficking," 9 Apr. 2018
Authoritarian governments can impose tax reforms by fiat and use coercion to increase compliance by citizens — and firms — outside their small loyalist circle.

— nita rudra, Washington Post, "India just retaliated with new tariffs on U.S. goods. Here’s why developing economies like tariffs.," 28 June 2018
Thus far, there have been virtually no documented incidents of coercion or abuse.

— ed kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, "The Joy of Voting by Mail," 26 May 2018
The Trump administration accuses China of using coercion and illicit means to obtain American technology.

— paul mozur and ana swanson, New York Times, "Chinese Tech Company Blocked From Buying American Components," 16 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'coercion.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of coercion

Middle English cohercion, borrowed from Anglo-French cohercioun, borrowed from Late Latin coerctiōn-, coerctiō, by-form of Latin coercitiōn-, coercitiō, from coerci-, variant stem of coercēre "to coerce" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

coercion Synonyms

Law Dictionary

coercion

noun co·er·cion \ kō-ˈər-zhən, -shən \

legal Definition of coercion

: the use of express or implied threats of violence or reprisal (as discharge from employment) or other intimidating behavior that puts a person in immediate fear of the consequences in order to compel that person to act against his or her will; also : the defense that one acted under coercion — see also defense, duress — compare undue influence