as in forced
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as in obliged
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
public opinion compelled her to fire her scandal-plagued aide
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Recent Examples of compelled
Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 7 May 2026
Alito, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, felt compelled to respond in remarkable terms.
—Ella Lee, The Hill, 6 May 2026
The court document said she felt compelled to comply with Cantrell's requests at his home in Burleson in July 2016.
—Marvin Hurst, CBS News, 6 May 2026
Grant was compelled to celebrate the nation’s hundredth anniversary just as its boldest experiment in democracy to date was being dismantled.
—Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
No out-of-state farmer is compelled to change a single practice under state welfare laws.
—Jesse Plunkett, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 May 2026
Kristil Krug’s cousin believes that if communications companies had been compelled to respond faster, officials could have identified who was making the threats and saved her.
—Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 1 May 2026
Fisher felt compelled to respond.
—ABC News, 1 May 2026
By selling the 350 puts one takes on the risk of being compelled to purchase the stock at that strike price, but that’s where the stock was trading before this earnings release.
—Michael Khouw, CNBC, 1 May 2026
Adjective
True personal data sovereignty requires systems that make compelled access technically impossible, not merely contractually discouraged.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Verb
Starmer is not compelled to call another general election until 2029, when his term expires.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 7 May 2026
Alito, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch, felt compelled to respond in remarkable terms.
—Ella Lee, The Hill, 6 May 2026
The court document said she felt compelled to comply with Cantrell's requests at his home in Burleson in July 2016.
—Marvin Hurst, CBS News, 6 May 2026
Grant was compelled to celebrate the nation’s hundredth anniversary just as its boldest experiment in democracy to date was being dismantled.
—Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
No out-of-state farmer is compelled to change a single practice under state welfare laws.
—Jesse Plunkett, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 May 2026
Kristil Krug’s cousin believes that if communications companies had been compelled to respond faster, officials could have identified who was making the threats and saved her.
—Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 1 May 2026
Fisher felt compelled to respond.
—ABC News, 1 May 2026
By selling the 350 puts one takes on the risk of being compelled to purchase the stock at that strike price, but that’s where the stock was trading before this earnings release.
—Michael Khouw, CNBC, 1 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compelled
Adjective
-
Some of his jabs seemed a bit forced and stagy.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
-
In nearly every practical sense, these conditions mirror those faced by people in forced labor.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Ticketmaster’s worst enemy obliged.—
Devon Ivie,
Vulture,
6 May 2026
-
Of course, Brown obliged the crowd’s request for second-year point guard Tyler Kolek.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
5 May 2026
Adjective
-
Russia has targeted the children through coerced adoption and family separation, forcing them to speak the Russian language and take on its cultural identity and customs — what’s known as Russification.—
Shahrzad Rasekh,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
-
The third would allow survivors of coerced debt to formally challenge such obligations with a creditor, and the last would create a program to help survivors get home security to protect themselves from future harm.—
Lauren Linder,
CBS News,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Judges are obligated to give high deference to arbitrators and are expected to uphold awards so long as the award was not procured by fraud and the arbitrator didn’t fail to consider relevant evidence or follow basic legal principles.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
12 May 2026
-
Whatever that amount is, the BPU will be obligated to take at least half of it to put toward low income residents’ bill relief.—
Sofi Zeman
May 12,
Kansas City Star,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
Traffic stops represent the most common nonvoluntary interaction between citizens and police officers in the U.S.—
Derek Epp,
The Conversation,
3 Feb. 2023
-
Of the 59 CEOs who departed S&P 500 firms last year, 30.5% were let go on a nonvoluntary basis, up from 22.1% in 2017, according to the Conference Board's 2019 CEO Succession Practices report.—
Fortune,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Compelled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compelled. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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