1
as in instructions
a statement of what to do that must be obeyed by those concerned
a secretary of defense who was fond of issuing harshly worded imperatives
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in obligations
something one must do because of prior agreement
although he had little taste for the social imperatives that come with being governor, he put on a brave face
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of imperatives
From the interpolation of four variegating imperatives emerges a single prophetic voice.
—
Elaine L. Wang
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
With the dawn of the AI era, many organizations see transformation and change as urgent imperatives.
—Julia Dhar, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Some leaders just want to have fun Beyond the strategic imperatives of statecraft, the travel patterns of world leaders occasionally reveal a significant personal dimension.
—Collin J. Meisel, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
For pop music in particular, narrative can be fundamentally in tension with other imperatives.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
With their border dispute locked in a stalemate, India is choosing to insulate its diplomatic and economic imperatives from the security conflict with China, according to Kewalramani from the Takshashila Institution.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2025
All political leaders must weigh the competing imperatives of public needs, personal goals and partisan responsibilities.
—John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
For individual engineers, the Microsoft study’s findings suggest several strategic imperatives.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2025
To mitigate risks, organizations must treat data governance and cybersecurity as fundamental business imperatives, not afterthoughts.
—Jack McCullough, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
Elaine L. Wang
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
With the dawn of the AI era, many organizations see transformation and change as urgent imperatives.
—Julia Dhar, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Some leaders just want to have fun Beyond the strategic imperatives of statecraft, the travel patterns of world leaders occasionally reveal a significant personal dimension.
—Collin J. Meisel, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2025
For pop music in particular, narrative can be fundamentally in tension with other imperatives.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
With their border dispute locked in a stalemate, India is choosing to insulate its diplomatic and economic imperatives from the security conflict with China, according to Kewalramani from the Takshashila Institution.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2025
All political leaders must weigh the competing imperatives of public needs, personal goals and partisan responsibilities.
—John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
For individual engineers, the Microsoft study’s findings suggest several strategic imperatives.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2025
To mitigate risks, organizations must treat data governance and cybersecurity as fundamental business imperatives, not afterthoughts.
—Jack McCullough, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imperatives
Noun
-
Do that by using a clean rag or paper towel treated with a small amount of commercial cleaning or bleach solution, and rub them for as long as directed by the manufacturer's instructions.—
Audrey Bruno,
SELF,
10 Sep. 2025
-
In recent incidents, Google's Gemini CLI destroyed user files while attempting to reorganize them, and Replit's AI coding service deleted a production database despite explicit instructions not to modify code.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The software giant has repeatedly encountered shortages in AI computing, exacerbated by its obligations to supply OpenAI.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
The higher wages still allow people to keep up with obligations and build stronger credit profiles.—
Suzanne Blake,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Ever since, as the Taliban returned to power, once again issuing edicts to suppress women and girls, the clinic and its 34-year-old midwife Atifa have continued to provide a lifeline for mothers and young children.—
Elise Blanchard,
Time,
21 Aug. 2025
-
One of the fundamental edicts of the [original Naked Gun creators] Zucker Brothers was you played against the comedy.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Parents who have no one else who can drop off and pick up their kids from school, for instance, need at least more flexibility in work hours and time off than employees who don’t have these responsibilities.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Women also most often mentioned family-role sacrifices (like childcare and household responsibilities).—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Many tech companies thrive with top-down leadership and linear management—clear directives from the founder to executors, without middle layers slowing or distorting the vision.—
Jonathan Low,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Regarding the centers, Ohio State has said the closures were tied to Trump’s anti-DEI directives.—
Chris Quintana,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The Global South's innovation ecosystem shows us that technology can emerge from and serve local needs.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Given City’s soft centre has come from a failure to cope with counter-attacks and a lack of pace to defend in a high line, Khusanov may just be the blunt force antidote Guardiola needs.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The phones will be available for pre-orders at the end of the week, and hitting shelves in 10 days.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Those orders jumped from $138 billion to $455 billion and are a testament to growing demand for Artificial Intelligence demand in the cloud services sector.—
JJ Kinahan,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Leaders have since reached an agreement to de-escalate tensions, temporarily lowering the duties to 30% on the United States’ side and 10% on China’s part.—
Nino Paoli,
Fortune,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Other than writing games and chuffa, one of the duties of the writers was to serve as a sherpa for the different comedian guests who’d come on.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Imperatives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imperatives. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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