oblige

verb \ ə-ˈblīj \

|Updated on: 9 Aug 2018

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Examples: oblige in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of oblige

obliged; obliging

transitive verb

1 : to constrain by physical, moral, or legal force or by the exigencies of circumstance

obliged to find a job

felt obliged to share it with her

2 a : to put in one's debt by a favor or service

We are much obliged for your help.

b : to do a favor for

always ready to oblige a friend

intransitive verb

: to do something as or as if as a favor

When he was asked for advice, he obliged.

—

obliger

noun

See oblige defined for English-language learners

See oblige defined for kids

Examples of oblige in a Sentence

The law obliges the government to release certain documents to the public.
Her job obliges her to work overtime and on weekends.
She's always ready to oblige her friends.
“Thank you for your help.” “I'm happy to oblige.”
They asked for food and he obliged with soup and sandwiches.

Recent Examples of oblige from the Web

Tarkanian, a familiar right-wing name in Nevada politics, obliged.

— tara golshan, Vox, "Heller is the only Republican senator up for reelection in a state Hillary Clinton won in 2016.," 11 June 2018
His administration's hands are tied, however, by international rules obliging the United States to accept asylum applications.

— author: delphine schrank, Anchorage Daily News, "First women, children from Central American ‘caravan’ enter U.S. seeking asylum," 1 May 2018
One child played with his beard, and the scruffy Duke happily obliged.

— erica gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "Kids Couldn't Keep Their Hands Off of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry in Ireland," 11 July 2018
Wilson stepped down as Adelaide archbishop after he was convicted in May. Adelaide is the capital of South Australia state which will bring in laws in October obliging priests to report evidence of abuse heard during a confession.

— rod mcguirk, chicagotribune.com, "Australian bishop sentenced to year's detention for cover-up," 2 July 2018
The result required getting help from South Korea, which wound up obliging with a 2-0 win that eliminated defending champion Germany.

— avi creditor, SI.com, "LIVE: Mexico Takes on Brazil Aiming to Snap World Cup Last-16 Curse," 2 July 2018
Wilson stepped down as Adelaide archbishop after he was convicted in May. Adelaide is the capital of South Australia state which will bring in laws in October obliging priests to report evidence of abuse heard during a confession.

— rod mcguirk, USA TODAY, "Australian bishop sentenced to year’s detention for child sex abuse cover-up," 2 July 2018
The three stars of the Netflix film -- Joey King, 18, Jacob Elordi, 21, and Joel Courtney, 22 -- obliged of course.

— amy kaufman, latimes.com, "How the critically-maligned Netflix film 'The Kissing Booth' became a pop culture sensation," 28 June 2018
But Kirshenbaum still expects Harrisburg will be deluged with notes from employers who don’t think they should be obliged to boost employees’ standard of living or cut their hours without cutting their pay.

— joseph n. distefano, Philly.com, "Pa. proposal would boost overtime for half a million workers," 26 June 2018

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

Did You Know?

Oblige shares some similarities with its close relative obligate, but there are also differences. Oblige derived via Middle English and Anglo-French from Latin obligare ("to bind to"), a combination of ob- ("to or toward") and ligare ("to bind"), whereas obligate descended directly from the past participle of obligare. Both oblige and obligate are frequently used in their past participle forms to express a kind of legal or moral constraint. Obligated once meant "indebted for a service or favor," but today it typically means "required to do something because the law requires it or because it is the right thing to do." Obliged is now the preferred term for the sense that Southern author Flannery O'Connor used in a 1952 letter: "I would be much obliged if you would send me six copies."

Origin and Etymology of oblige

Middle English, from Anglo-French obliger, from Latin obligare, literally, to bind to, from ob- toward + ligare to bind — more at ligature

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

oblige Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of oblige

force, compel, coerce, constrain, oblige mean to make someone or something yield. force is the general term and implies the overcoming of resistance by the exertion of strength, power, or duress.

- forced to flee for their lives

compel typically suggests overcoming of resistance or unwillingness by an irresistible force.

- compelled to admit my mistake

coerce suggests overcoming resistance or unwillingness by actual or threatened violence or pressure.

- coerced into signing over the rights

constrain suggests the effect of a force or circumstance that limits freedom of action or choice.

- constrained by conscience

oblige implies the constraint of necessity, law, or duty.

- felt obliged to go

OBLIGE Defined for English Language Learners

oblige

verb

Definition of oblige for English Language Learners

: to force or require (someone or something) to do something because of a law or rule or because it is necessary
: to do something that someone has asked you to do : to do a favor for (someone)