obligatory

adjective oblig·a·to·ry \ ə-ˈbli-gə-ˌtȯr-ē , ä- also ˈä-bli-gə- \

Definition of obligatory

1 :binding in law or conscience

The ordinance made it obligatory that homeowners clear the snow from the sidewalks.

2 :relating to or enforcing an obligation

a writ obligatory

3 :mandatory, required

obligatory military service

; also :so commonplace as to be a convention, fashion, or cliché

the obligatory death scene in opera

The thriller included the obligatory chase scene.

4 :obligate 1

an obligatory biped

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obligatorily

play \ə-ˌbli-gə-ˈtȯr-ə-lē, ä- also ˌä-bli-gə-\ adverb

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See obligatory defined for kids

Examples of obligatory in a Sentence

The training is obligatory for all personnel.
This action movie includes the obligatory chase scenes.

Recent Examples of obligatory from the Web

Since the 1960s, the site has been a part of an obligatory pilgrimage for Afro-descendants looking to connect with their African heritage.

— kiratiana freelon, The Root, "Look at All These Monuments From Around the World That Honor Those Who Fought Against Slavery," 24 Aug. 2017
The obligatory talks surrounding Saturday night’s bout focused on Terence Crawford’s plan to defeat mutual two-belt 140-pound champion Julius Indongo and become the division’s unified champion.

— lance pugmire, latimes.com, "Bevy of belts should boost boxer Terence Crawford's pound-for-pound standing," 18 Aug. 2017
This year’s obligatory spending has soared 7.3 billion reais ($2.3 billion) above the level initially requested by the government, as civil servant salaries accounting for 27.3 percent of those expenditures leave little wiggle room to cut.

— rachel gamarski, Bloomberg.com, "Brazil Budget Worries Too Much to Take for Foreign Investors," 10 Aug. 2017
The advertised prices do not include the substantial, obligatory service charges for purchasing in advance.

— karen huppertz, ajc, "At Issue:How can cities prevent transportation plans from languishing?," 4 Aug. 2017
The obligatory history paragraph: Strawberries have been considered a European delicacy for centuries, both for aesthetic and pragmatic reasons.

— jon wertheim, SI.com, "Wimbledon is truly a treasure, but its classic strawberries and cream snack is not," 13 July 2017
Some obligatory orientation: The Gaspe (gas-PAY) Peninsula is an extension of Quebec province roughly the size of Belgium that's bordered on the north by the St. Lawrence River and extends into the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

— alan solomon, chicagotribune.com, "Quebec's Gaspe Peninsula is hard to get to, easy to love," 13 July 2017
At midday join the throngs for an obligatory stop at Tunnel View.

— terry wood, The Seattle Times, "Experts offer how-to tips on visiting Yosemite National Park," 5 July 2017
The 2015 tournament also featured a visa snafu that meant a half-dozen players weren’t available for Cuba’s opening game against the United States, followed by the obligatory political defections.

— mark zeigler, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Soccer's Gold Cup returns to San Diego," 5 July 2017

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