as in compels
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
the problem is of your own making, so don't think that you can obligate me to help
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Recent Examples of obligates
The automotive groups accused Volkswagen of violating a standard dealer agreement, which obligates the company to sell its products through authorized dealerships.
—
Chase Jordan
may 19,
Charlotte Observer,
19 May 2026
Iran is a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) that obligates it not to enrich uranium for military purposes.
—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
The collective defense clause, if invoked by a member state, obligates all other members of the transatlantic alliance to treat an attack on one as an attack on all.
—
Lucia I Suarez Sang,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
Europe’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) obligates foreign streaming services to invest a portion of their revenue into local productions, but leaves the modalities of this obligation to each individual country.
—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
27 Mar. 2026
The registry obligates legitimate telemarketers to stop calling numbers listed on it.
—
Dante Motley,
Austin American Statesman,
13 Mar. 2026
In prior administrations, including during my time in the Obama administration, such leverage ran into statutory guardrails under the Taiwan Relations Act, which obligates the United States to provide Taiwan defensive capabilities.
—
Dewardric L. McNeal,
CNBC,
13 Feb. 2026
Orange County’s agreement with ICE only obligates the county to detain up to 114 people, but the county was housing, on average, 140 inmates a day in January and last week, the count hit 182.
—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
The federal law dating back to 1967 obligates government agencies to turn over records to the public with some exceptions.
—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
13 Dec. 2025
Chase Jordan
may 19,
Charlotte Observer,
19 May 2026
Iran is a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) that obligates it not to enrich uranium for military purposes.
—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
The collective defense clause, if invoked by a member state, obligates all other members of the transatlantic alliance to treat an attack on one as an attack on all.
—
Lucia I Suarez Sang,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
Europe’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) obligates foreign streaming services to invest a portion of their revenue into local productions, but leaves the modalities of this obligation to each individual country.
—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
27 Mar. 2026
The registry obligates legitimate telemarketers to stop calling numbers listed on it.
—
Dante Motley,
Austin American Statesman,
13 Mar. 2026
In prior administrations, including during my time in the Obama administration, such leverage ran into statutory guardrails under the Taiwan Relations Act, which obligates the United States to provide Taiwan defensive capabilities.
—
Dewardric L. McNeal,
CNBC,
13 Feb. 2026
Orange County’s agreement with ICE only obligates the county to detain up to 114 people, but the county was housing, on average, 140 inmates a day in January and last week, the count hit 182.
—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
The federal law dating back to 1967 obligates government agencies to turn over records to the public with some exceptions.
—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
13 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obligates
Verb
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That started to change with the 2023 Right to Read law, which compels districts to use K-3 literacy curricula aligned with the science of reading.
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Ultimately, Dataland compels society to grapple with critical questions concerning memory, expression, and our evolving identity in the age of artificial intelligence.
Verb
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However, the rotation of this filament clearly dominates how the galaxies within it spin, perhaps by funneling hydrogen gas along the dark-matter filament and onto the galaxies in a way that coerces their spin while providing further fuel for star formation.
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Haunted by the suspicious death of his ailing mother, Ali, a university professor, coerces his enigmatic gardener to execute a cold-blooded act of vengeance.
Verb
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That emergency obliges all of us — critical filmmakers, activists, big and small festivals — to be more courageous.
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The court replaced it with a read-in version that obliges parliament to refer a panel’s findings to the impeachment committee, which is responsible for conducting a full inquiry into the hearing evidence, determining whether grounds exist to remove a sitting president.
Verb
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The mother-daughter owners of an Orlando preschool are licensed for 28 children but now enroll only 23 because of an ongoing teacher shortage that forces them to rely on substitutes, some hired through a new Uber-like app.
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Every awards season produces a movie that forces Hollywood to reconsider its own rules and bias.
Cite this Entry
“Obligates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obligates. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.
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