1
as in compels
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
the public outcry from the scandal forced the mayor to resign road construction forced them to take an alternate route
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in violates
to engage in sexual activity and especially intercourse with a person unwilling or unable to give consent
was accused of forcing a woman
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in workforces
a body of persons at work or available for work
the entire force of the shipyard will be needed to get this government order done on time
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in pressures
the use of power to impose one's will on another
a cruel tyrant who disbanded the parliament and ruled by force
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in police
a body of officers of the law
the police detective retired after 23 years on the force
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in supplies
the number of individuals or amount of something available at any given time
the great debate during the Cold War was whether the nation's missile force was adequate
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of forces
Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Employers counter that the cost of providing what unions want adversely affects their competitiveness in other states and nations and forces them to raise prices, reduce employment or even leave California to remain solvent.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 13 Sep. 2025
SMBs don’t need a big budget to ask hard questions—just the foresight to ask them early, before an attacker forces the conversation.
—Kevin Pierce, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
However, the most important view will be the one that forces us to confront tensions between human ambitions and planetary limits.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2025
Purdy is set to miss nearly a month with turf toe and a non-throwing shoulder injury, which forces Jones into the starting job in that span.
—Tim Crowley, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
Debbie is a brilliant wife, mother, and advice columnist who takes matters into her own hands when a series of injustices forces her down the path of revenge, from #1 New York Times and international bestselling author McFadden.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 11 Sep. 2025
But upon Bennet’s arrival, things take a turn for the bizarre, when the wealthy tycoon builds himself a prison cell in the basement, in an apparent act of meditative penance that forces Blakey into an inversion of traditional power dynamics.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
The death sets off a chain of events that forces Lilian to revisit her fractured family life and complicated bond with her ex-husband.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
Joseph Nepomuceno, The Washington Examiner, 13 Sep. 2025
In March, Adra’s co-director on the film Hamdan Ballal was detained by Israeli forces overnight after being assaulted by settlers just after an iftar dinner during Ramadan.
—Max Saltman, CNN Money, 13 Sep. 2025
The new glue has impressive properties, including its ability to withstand significant forces before failing.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 13 Sep. 2025
Rip currents are formidable natural forces, but knowing how to react can significantly increase your chances of safely navigating these challenging waters.
—Nc Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 13 Sep. 2025
Polish and allied forces shot down at least three UAVs for the first time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
—Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
Spring 2026 looked to windswept summers in Cornwall and the West Coast of her native New Zealand, where natural forces such as water, earth, and sun are reflected through design tropes that leave the urban environment to the great outdoors.
—Roxanne Robinson, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Russia's Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces shot down 69 Ukrainian drones overnight.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 7 Sep. 2025
Reports of Ukrainian foreign fighters taken captive by Russian forces have already surfaced.
—Rebecca Johns, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Verb
Daniels steps up, but Wyatt is right there and forces Daniels to cut back right into Sorrell and Brooks, who split the sack for a loss of 2 yards.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Employers counter that the cost of providing what unions want adversely affects their competitiveness in other states and nations and forces them to raise prices, reduce employment or even leave California to remain solvent.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 13 Sep. 2025
SMBs don’t need a big budget to ask hard questions—just the foresight to ask them early, before an attacker forces the conversation.
—Kevin Pierce, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
However, the most important view will be the one that forces us to confront tensions between human ambitions and planetary limits.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2025
Purdy is set to miss nearly a month with turf toe and a non-throwing shoulder injury, which forces Jones into the starting job in that span.
—Tim Crowley, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
Debbie is a brilliant wife, mother, and advice columnist who takes matters into her own hands when a series of injustices forces her down the path of revenge, from #1 New York Times and international bestselling author McFadden.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 11 Sep. 2025
But upon Bennet’s arrival, things take a turn for the bizarre, when the wealthy tycoon builds himself a prison cell in the basement, in an apparent act of meditative penance that forces Blakey into an inversion of traditional power dynamics.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 6 Sep. 2025
The death sets off a chain of events that forces Lilian to revisit her fractured family life and complicated bond with her ex-husband.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
By the summer of 2022, systems like the Bayraktar TB2 became less effective as air defenses increased and commanders began spreading their forces apart.
—Joseph Nepomuceno, The Washington Examiner, 13 Sep. 2025
In March, Adra’s co-director on the film Hamdan Ballal was detained by Israeli forces overnight after being assaulted by settlers just after an iftar dinner during Ramadan.
—Max Saltman, CNN Money, 13 Sep. 2025
The new glue has impressive properties, including its ability to withstand significant forces before failing.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 13 Sep. 2025
Rip currents are formidable natural forces, but knowing how to react can significantly increase your chances of safely navigating these challenging waters.
—Nc Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 13 Sep. 2025
Polish and allied forces shot down at least three UAVs for the first time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
—Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
Spring 2026 looked to windswept summers in Cornwall and the West Coast of her native New Zealand, where natural forces such as water, earth, and sun are reflected through design tropes that leave the urban environment to the great outdoors.
—Roxanne Robinson, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Russia's Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces shot down 69 Ukrainian drones overnight.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 7 Sep. 2025
Reports of Ukrainian foreign fighters taken captive by Russian forces have already surfaced.
—Rebecca Johns, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forces
Verb
-
Yet these productions are increasingly designed around an ethos of visual-over-depth that compels us to immediately document and post each scene.—
David Hochman,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
-
One way lawsuits can generate this pressure is through the discovery process, which compels companies to turn over internal documents, and could shed insight into what executives knew about safety risks or marketing harms.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Since Missouri vanity plates have to follow the state obscenity law, a court would need to find that the state law violates the First Amendment.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Further, the letter warned that Unwrapped violates Spotify's developer policy, which bans using the Spotify platform or any Spotify content to build machine learning or AI models.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
They mentor employees, stabilize workforces, and help businesses compete for larger contracts.—
Dan Ringo,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Never mind that large language models have so far proven useless at 95% of the companies that have made their workforces try to use them, researchers from MIT recently found.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Combined, these economic and political pressures created fertile ground for social mobilization.—
Nir Kshetri,
The Conversation,
14 Sep. 2025
-
This week, the Fed is widely expected to cut interest rates, responding to a slowing labor market that’s outweighed the risk of inflationary price pressures.—
Billy Bambrough,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The university initially stated on social media that a suspect was in custody, but Scott Trotter, a university spokesman, told the New York Times and Deseret News that police determined the person who was taken into custody was not the shooter.—
George Petras,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
-
More than 3,000 people were estimated to be at the event, according to the university's police chief, Jeff Long.—
Meredith Deliso,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
In a dressing room near the amphitheatre on Little Island, a makeup artist (James Kaliardos, standing) was pouring his attention and a wealth of beauty supplies onto a countertenor (Anthony Roth Costanzo, seated).—
Henry Alford,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
-
And for those who enjoy the in-store shopping experience, select Party City locations nationwide continue to welcome customers who want to browse and pick up their party supplies in person.—
Elizabeth Fogarty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Compulsory heterosexuality is a theoretical framework coined by lesbian scholar Adrienne Rich in 1980 to describe how heterosexuality as an institution compels and coerces female sexuality for patriarchal purposes.—
Quispe López,
Them.,
27 Aug. 2025
-
The pic centers on Ali (Ekin Koç), a university professor who is haunted by the suspicious death of his ailing mother and coerces his enigmatic gardener to execute a cold-blooded act of vengeance.—
Patrick Hipes,
Deadline,
26 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Lanier rapes Forsythe during a job interview, which O’Brien recounts in upsetting, unwavering detail.—
Jared Sullivan,
The Atlantic,
17 Oct. 2024
-
Donald treats Ivana with similar contempt, and then rapes her.—
Richard Brody,
The New Yorker,
10 Oct. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Forces.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forces. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share