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
Explore Merriam-Webster
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
-
In fact, this is the rare action film whose climactic one-on-one showdown doesn't play like an obligatory set piece.
-
Winners usually head to the Eiffel Tower for the obligatory photo call to secure that perfect picture following the weekend of the finals for the season's second grand slam.
-
Obligatory bets: Ohio lawmakers are wading into the Cleveland Cavaliers rivalry with the Golden State Warriors ahead of the NBA finals, cleveland.com reporter Stephen Koff writes.
-
CLEVELAND (AP) — Moments after the Eastern Conference championship banner was raised by the Cavaliers for the third straight time and the obligatory postgame interviews ended, Tyronn Lue slipped quietly away.
-
Middle School recently took their obligatory class trip to Washington, D.C. for a week of history, adventure, and blithely clogging up Metro escalators while commuters fumed silently.
-
Raised plazas and terraces — the obligatory package of public green space, supposedly easily accessible — are unlikely to lure people from the sidewalks.
-
Some of the women aimed their mobiles at me, but in a careless, obligatory way.
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.
15th Century
First Known Use of obligatory
15th century
OBLIGATORY Defined for English Language Learners
obligatory
playDefinition of obligatory for English Language Learners
-
: required by a law or rule
-
: always or often included as a familiar and expected part of something
Medical Dictionary
Learn More about obligatory
-
See words that rhyme with obligatory Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for obligatory Spanish Central: Translation of obligatory Nglish: Translation of obligatory for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of obligatory for Arabic speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up obligatory? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!