obligatory

adjective

ə-ˈbli-gə-ˌtȯr-ē How to pronounce obligatory (audio)
Definition of obligatorynext
1
as in mandatory
forcing one's compliance or participation by or as if by law in this state, school attendance is obligatory until the age of 16

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stereotyped
used or heard so often as to be dull the obligatory cliff-hanger endings for season finales of TV shows

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 obligatory While the royal family's website says that there are no obligatory codes of behavior for meeting King Charles, Queen Camilla or other royals, the traditional forms of address are a small curtsy for women and a neck bow for men. — Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026 And that brings us to the San Francisco Giants, which held their obligatory Pride Night on Friday by having 10 gay couples renew their vows in a pregame ceremony that included having a drag queen along the first base line. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2026 During the eighteenth century, travelers on the Grand Tour, completing their education in art and architectural history, made an obligatory stop in Paestum. — Literary Hub, 11 June 2026 Best Things to Do Get your obligatory sightseeing out of the way in Athens, and then head to the beach for an invigorating dip in the Aegean Sea. — Aileen Weintraub, Travel + Leisure, 10 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for obligatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obligatory
  1. mandatory
  2. stereotyped
  3. compulsory
  4. tired
  5. required
  6. commonplace
  7. incumbent
  8. usual
Adjective
  • Bring recess back as a mandatory part of the school schedule.
    — Taylor Carney, AJC.com, 6 July 2026
  • The ruling also reflected Sotomayor’s reasoning that owners and players were still bargaining in good faith and that salary policies were mandatory subjects of bargaining.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 6 July 2026
Definition of mandatory
Adjective
  • This is a directed, stereotyped behavior in which the highest-resolution region of the somatosensory surface is brought to bear on the object requiring the most detailed analysis.
    — Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • Latinos are a fundamental part of American history and culture, and one of the largest communities in the United States, yet their presence in Hollywood has long been limited, stereotyped, or overlooked.
    — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 13 Apr. 2026
Definition of stereotyped
Adjective
  • As economist and Opportunity@Work founder Byron Auguste has noted, when policymakers, employers and parents all realized that the shifting job landscape required a different preparatory path, states passed compulsory education laws.
    — Tim Knowles, Fortune, 8 July 2026
  • In our analysis, the gap between women and men may persist unless masculinity itself becomes less dependent on dominance, control and compulsory heterosexuality.
    — Ann M. Merriwether, The Conversation, 7 July 2026
Definition of compulsory
Adjective
  • But after two wars in nine months, there was a sense of tired resignation when news of the airstrikes hit Tehran Wednesday.
    — Frederik Pleitgen, CNN Money, 11 July 2026
  • Most transformation requests are really about a bottleneck someone is tired of working around.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026
Definition of tired
Adjective
  • The ruling aligned with the views of the Constitutional Court, which, in removing Yoon from office in April 2025, found that his martial law decree lacked legal grounds and failed to follow required procedures.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 July 2026
  • Investigators reviewed Walmart surveillance footage, which police said captured the collision and showed the driver of the Ford F-250 inspecting the damage before leaving without providing the required information.
    — Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 9 July 2026
Definition of required
Adjective
  • Guard propaganda showing Trump bleeding out from a sniper bullet or dying in a drone attack is commonplace.
    — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 8 July 2026
  • So moving on to his seventh, in this case the Florida Panthers, feels pretty commonplace now.
    — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 8 July 2026
Definition of commonplace
Adjective
  • Bringing work back to Hollywood has become a major platform for both incumbent Mayor Karen Bass and opponent Nithya Raman, with both calling for California’s $750 million film and TV tax incentives program to be uncapped.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 9 July 2026
  • In addition, an incumbent Connecticut governor has not been voted out of office in the general election since 1954 when Republican John Davis Lodge lost to a young Democrat named Abe Ribicoff.
    — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 9 July 2026
Definition of incumbent
Adjective
  • The announcement came with all the usual comparisons to the big foundation models against benchmarks that provide some vague sense of capability.
    — Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 10 July 2026
  • The American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament returned to the shores of Lake Tahoe on Friday with its usual assortment of sports and entertainment celebrities and tens of thousands of enthusiastic fans.
    — José Luis Villegas, Sacbee.com, 10 July 2026
Definition of usual

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obligations
obligatory
oblige
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Cite this Entry

“Obligatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obligatory. Accessed 11 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on obligatory

Nglish: Translation of obligatory for Spanish Speakers

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