coercive

adjective

co·​er·​cive kō-ˈər-siv 

: serving or intended to coerce

coercive power

coercive measures

coercively adverb

coerciveness noun

Examples of coercive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Some analysts see the blockade as coercive leverage rather than a terminal escalation. —Anniek Bao, CNBC, 13 Apr. 2026

This is especially true when the goal is not support but coercive efforts to change someone’s identity. —A.j. Russo, Baltimore Sun, 13 Apr. 2026

Through a series of maneuvers, Rue manages to trade Laurie’s coercive employ for that of Alamo Brown (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), a strip club magnate who quickly puts her to work managing one of his establishments. —Alison Herman, Variety, 8 Apr. 2026

State legislatures can define conversion therapy a bit more narrowly, for example, by prohibiting the physical and more coercive techniques that initially gave rise to these bans. —Kevin Cope, The Conversation, 3 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

coerce + -ive

First Known Use

circa 1600, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing coercive

• coercive force

Rhymes for coercive

• cursive
• aversive
• discursive
• dispersive
• immersive
• recursive
• subversive

Legal Definition

coercive

adjective

co·​er·​cive kō-ˈər-siv 

1

: serving or intended to coerce

2

: resulting from coercion

to protect women from coercive intimacy

—Kimberle Crenshaw