coerce

verb

co·​erce kō-ˈərs 

coerced; coercing

transitive verb

1

: to compel to an act or choice

was coerced into agreeing

abusers who coerce their victims into silence

2

: to achieve by force or threat

coerce compliance

coerce obedience

3

: to restrain or dominate by force

religion in the past has tried to coerce the irreligious

—W. R. Inge

coercible

kō-ˈər-sə-bəl 

adjective

Synonyms

• blackjack
• compel
• constrain
• dragoon
• drive
• force
• impel
• impress
• make
• muscle
• obligate
• oblige
• press
• pressure
• sandbag

Choose the Right Synonym for coerce

force, compel, coerce, constrain, oblige mean to make someone or something yield.

force is the general term and implies the overcoming of resistance by the exertion of strength, power, or duress.

forced to flee for their lives

compel typically suggests overcoming of resistance or unwillingness by an irresistible force.

compelled to admit my mistake

coerce suggests overcoming resistance or unwillingness by actual or threatened violence or pressure.

coerced into signing over the rights

constrain suggests the effect of a force or circumstance that limits freedom of action or choice.

constrained by conscience

oblige implies the constraint of necessity, law, or duty.

felt obliged to go

Examples of coerce in a Sentence

A confession was coerced from the suspect by police.

was coerced into signing the document

Recent Examples on the Web

Wynant’s character is coerced into releasing a man imprisoned in a monastery who turns out to be the devil. —Nick Thomas, Hartford Courant, 5 Nov. 2024

Vance also suggested that wealthy parents might go so far as to coerce their children to undergo gender surgeries to get into better colleges and universities. —Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 1 Nov. 2024

State of play: The complaint, according to a copy seen by Axios, alleges the Times violated section 8(a) of the National Labor Relations Act that prohibits employers from interfering with, restraining or coercing employees in the exercise of their union rights. —Sara Fischer, Axios, 22 Oct. 2024

The answer is very simple: no buyer of Chrome would pay full price assuming a sale of it by Google in light of market knowledge that the sale would be coerced. —John Tamny, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English coarcen, coercen, borrowed from Anglo-French *cohercer, borrowed (with conjugation change) from Latin coercēre "to confine, shut up, restrict, restrain," from co- co- + arcēre "to hold in, prevent from approaching, keep away" — more at ark

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Kids Definition

coerce

verb

co·​erce kō-ˈərs 

coerced; coercing

: to cause someone to do something by force or threat

coercion

-ˈər-zhən

-shən

noun

coercive

-ˈər-siv

adjective

Legal Definition

coerce

transitive verb

co·​erce kō-ˈərs 

coerced; coercing

: to subject (a person) to coercion compare importune, solicit