compels

verb

present tense third-person singular of compel
as in obligates
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure public opinion compelled her to fire her scandal-plagued aide

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 compels Washington also opposed another streaming regulation, known as Bill 109, passed in Quebec last December, which compels streaming platforms to prioritize French-language content. — Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026 Frank’s ruling keeps the proposal to raise the homestead exemption up to $250,000 for Florida property owners on the ballot, but compels Attorney General James Uthmeier to rewrite parts of the plan. — Romy Ellenbogen Herald, Miami Herald, 4 Aug. 2026 The competitive pressure to achieve maximal adoption compels a convergence toward openness. — Gerui Wang, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026 Every drop hits like a quake, and each muscular beat compels you to shake your ass. — Kiana Mickles, Pitchfork, 17 July 2026 When systemic failures persist, lawsuits are the catalyst that compels meaningful reform and protects children who cannot protect themselves. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 26 June 2026 This landmark measure compels our counties and municipalities to remain politically responsive to the people who live there. — Anthony G. Brown, Baltimore Sun, 26 June 2026 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. — Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 21 June 2026 This pattern may persist until a major tragedy or systemic shock finally compels the continent’s principal powers to negotiate a new security order. — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 18 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compels
  1. obligates
  2. coerces
  3. obliges
  4. forces
  5. drives
  6. impels
Verb
  • The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 obligates Washington to measure and reduce regulatory burdens.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Zeus’s Law obligates Telemachus and Odysseus’s wife Penelope to host the suitors who hope to marry her in Odysseus’s absence.
    — Natasha O'Neill, Vanity Fair, 16 July 2026
Definition of obligates
Verb
  • 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.
    — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 4 Dec. 2025
  • 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.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 14 Nov. 2025
Definition of coerces
Verb
  • The following day, the state added him to its official register of terrorists and extremists, a designation that obliges Russian banks to freeze his assets.
    — Susie Violet Ward, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Zeus obliges, striking their ship with a thunderbolt that destroys it and kills every member of Odysseus’ crew except the king himself.
    — Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 20 July 2026
Definition of obliges
Verb
  • Coyote first hoodwinks and then forces Kevin into his lawsuit plans, taking Acme to task in a way the corporation, confident in its imperviousness, finds laughable.
    — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
  • That forces them to interact with unknown adults that are outside the jurisdiction of the school.
    — Michele Gile, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of forces
Verb
  • Reuse drives the design That reusable architecture could be just as important as the rocket’s lower unit cost.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
  • The science behind rare disease drug development is changing fast, and with it, so is the financial engine that drives it all.
    — Brad Quick, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of drives
Verb
  • And so, our mission – grounded in both truth and love – impels us to discern the motives that shape events, and the shifts in thought that drive human progress through higher ideals of justice, mercy, and wisdom.
    — Christa Case Bryant, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Mar. 2025
Definition of impels

Browse Nearby Words

compelling
compels
compend
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Cite this Entry

“Compels.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compels. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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