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
The district court relied in part on testimony from an expert witness on religious groups and coercive influence.
—
Robert Alexander, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Nov. 2025
Recruitment figures have fallen in the autumn of 2025, and Moscow has had to turn in some areas to more coercive means of enlistment.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 11 Nov. 2025
The poem’s speaker is unnamed, one of the millions of Black Southerners who left the South for the North seeking an escape from Jim Crow, white supremacist terror, and coercive labor practices.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Would-be autocrats create environments of fear and powerlessness, using intimidation, overwhelming force or political and legal attacks, and other coercive tactics to force acquiescence and chill democratic pushback.
—Shelley Inglis, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for coercive
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Robert Alexander, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Nov. 2025
Recruitment figures have fallen in the autumn of 2025, and Moscow has had to turn in some areas to more coercive means of enlistment.
—Jack Watling, Foreign Affairs, 11 Nov. 2025
The poem’s speaker is unnamed, one of the millions of Black Southerners who left the South for the North seeking an escape from Jim Crow, white supremacist terror, and coercive labor practices.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Would-be autocrats create environments of fear and powerlessness, using intimidation, overwhelming force or political and legal attacks, and other coercive tactics to force acquiescence and chill democratic pushback.
—Shelley Inglis, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for coercive
Cite this Entry
“Coercive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coercive. Accessed 30 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLegal 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
Kimberle CrenshawLove words? Need even more definitions?
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