Compel

/kəmˈpɛl/ · verb

Meaning

(transitive, archaic, literally) To drive together, round up..

Definitions by Sense

1. (transitive, archaic, literally) To drive together, round up.
2. (transitive) To overpower; to subdue.
3. (transitive) To force, constrain, or coerce.
4. (transitive) To forcefully or powerfully motivate (a course of action).
5. (transitive) To have a strong, irresistible force (on someone or something).
6. (transitive) To exact, extort, (make) produce by force.
7. (obsolete) To force to yield; to overpower; to subjugate.
8. (obsolete) To gather or unite in a crowd or company.

Example Sentences

The shepherds compelled the stray sheep into the fold as night began to fall.

She had one of those perfect faces, which irresistibly compel the soul of a man.

Logic compels the wise, while fools feel compelled by emotions.

Congratulations, your courage compels respect.

Against my will, / As Pompey was, am I compell’d to set / Upon one battle all our liberties.

Wolsey […] compelled the people to pay up the whole subsidy at once.

To me it seems that extensive investment in relatively low-powered units may have the same ultimate result of motive power shortage as that which afflicts the London Midland Region today, and which has compelled the re-engining of some of the earlier multiple-unit diesel train sets.

Sellafield compels this kind of gaze into the abyss of deep time because it is a place where multiple time spans – some fleeting, some cosmic – drift in and out of view.

Synonyms for compel

Antonyms for compel

Related Words

Word Forms

• compels
• compelling
• compelled

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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