impelling 1 of 2

adjective

as in compelling

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impelling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of impel
1
as in driving
to set or keep in motion gasoline impels a car's engine

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forcing
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure I felt impelled to tell the truth, however painful it might be

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 impelling
Verb
The bedroom selfie Flora secretly sends her the morning after is the final straw impelling Carla to file for divorce. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026 This is a very forward-impelling perspective to come to. — Elizabeth Mata, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impelling
  1. compelling
  2. driving
  3. forcing
  4. conspicuous
  5. moving
  6. coercing
  7. striking
  8. activating
Adjective
  • Kendall Jenner and Hunter Schafer, in Valentino and Prada, respectively, wore two of the evening’s most compelling arguments for black and white evening attire.
    — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Fielder started in the realm of absurdist comedy, and with the Holmes project moves into a world of watercooler high crimes and compelling fourth-wall breaking.
    — Matt Donnelly, Variety, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of compelling
Verb
  • Biggs has accused the Hobbs administration of driving up home prices with stringent water requirements that stalled new buildings in parts of the Phoenix area.
    — Hannah Knowles The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
  • No amount of spending from whatever PAC source is driving it into the elections are going to change that dynamic.
    — NBC news, NBC news, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of driving
Verb
  • Smelters reject or penalize this dangerous contaminant, forcing miners to destroy it using energy-intensive, high-emission furnaces.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Holiday shopping used to feel concentrated in the weeks leading up to December, forcing households to absorb a big chunk of seasonal spending in a relatively short stretch.
    — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of forcing
Adjective
  • When the cleanup began, AI writing was often betrayed by conspicuous clichés.
    — Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Birds are conspicuous then – singing, defending territories, building nests and raising young.
    — Amy L. Scarpignato, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of conspicuous
Verb
  • The Sun enters your 6th House, beginning a month focused on routines, responsibilities, health, work, and the systems that keep everything moving.
    — Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Position for the companies that are moving from cost cutting into building.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of moving
Verb
  • In lawsuits filed last year, Chegg and PMC accused Google of abusing its monopoly power by coercing publishers into supplying content for AI Overviews for free, or risk disappearing from search results.
    — Emma Roth, The Verge, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Playing that cat, a work camp warden coercing Hawke’s character into smuggling gold through the wilderness, is none other than Russell Crowe.
    — Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of coercing
Adjective
  • The design plays with geometry, reflection and depth—think warm wood panelling, bronzed mirrors, walnut tables, brass accents and luminous geometric details, including a striking hexagonal counter.
    — Jaclyn DeGiorgio, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The timing is striking, since the midterm elections are less than two weeks away and polls show Democrats with an edge in many key races.
    — Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of striking
Verb
  • Those cases often centered on devices mistakenly activating or capturing speech that was not intended as a command.
    — MacKenzie Sigalos,Annie Palmer, CNBC, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Semaglutide mimics its activity by activating GLP-1 receptors in the body.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of activating

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Cite this Entry

“Impelling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impelling. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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