How to Use compel in a Sentence

compel

verb

• Illness compelled him to stay in bed.
• We took steps to compel their cooperation.
• Everyone knew the words and felt compelled to join in on the fun.
  — Ben Crandell, sun-sentinel.com, 16 Nov. 2019
• For a large part of my life, I felt compelled to pick at my zits.
  — Emily Gaudette, SELF, 15 Apr. 2019
• That compelled her to throw her hat into the ring against Knight.
  — Jeffrey Mervis, Science | AAAS, 15 June 2018
• Grief over her death compelled me to leave my longtime home on the N.C. coast.
  — Liz Biro, Indianapolis Star, 7 Apr. 2020
• For the non-car people, they will be compelled by the back story.
  — Charles Fleming, latimes.com, 27 Apr. 2018
• More recently, the Jets felt compelled to jump three slots to snag the No.
  — Dan Bickley, azcentral, 22 Mar. 2018
• That said… The main concern is that the new kids on the block seem compelled to record and share their antics.
  — The Salt Lake Tribune, 1 Aug. 2023
• The older players see it and have to be compelled to stay on top of their games.
  — Susan Miller Degnan, miamiherald, 5 Nov. 2017
• When the elite fail to lead, grassroots movements must compel them to do so.
  — Paul Laudicina, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2022
• So there was a bit of a blank space in my knowledge of Thai food, and I was compelled to learn more about it.
  — Jessica Carbone, Saveur, 18 Apr. 2024
• Like, what compels a man to turn his headwear away from his face?
  — Candace Buckner, Washington Post, 20 June 2024
• Does the government have the right to compel people to share?
  — Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 4 Sep. 2024
• But with a tip section still on the receipt, Mr. Ellsworth felt compelled to tip.
  — Ali Martin, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Sep. 2023
• But there has to be a present-day urgency compelling the return to the past.
  — Cressida Leyshon, The New Yorker, 31 July 2023
• The Sun’s article compelled me to visit St. Ann’s for the first time.
  — Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2024
• Not until the evening, in fact, was the low prevailing mood compelled to lift.
  — Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2024
• Imperati filed a motion to compel him to turn over the filings.
  — Kelan Lyons, courant.com, 5 Nov. 2020
• The crushing new wave of attacks appear to have compelled the rebels to accept the deal.
  — Bassem Mroue, Fox News, 6 July 2018
• If the residence doesn’t meet city code, the city can compel the landlord to fix the issues.
  — Nyssa Kruse, Arkansas Online, 23 Nov. 2020
• And Christians do not have to power to compel us to believe.
  — David Harsanyi, National Review, 17 Nov. 2020
• The board has no power to ask or compel Lowery to resign.
  — Michael Williams, Dallas News, 24 Aug. 2023
• Bolstered by the response, he was compelled to rush out the song as his new single.
  — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 29 Sep. 2023
• Lebanon filed suit last month in an effort to compel Wolf to release the funding.
  — USA TODAY, 17 Aug. 2020
• This transit can compel us to act first and think later.
  — Venus Australis, refinery29.com, 5 Apr. 2020
• August-October is the best time to go, just in case you are compelled to book a flight now.
  — Danielle Pointdujour, Essence, 17 July 2019
• Being a first-grade teacher for many years and a mother of six, I felt compelled to send it to you.
  — Heloise, Houston Chronicle, 3 June 2018
• Still, the journalist, propelled by the values that drew her to her profession, is compelled to try.
  — Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Oct. 2024
• Will they not only be moved by a fairy tale machined for a big, bad tech guy, the toughest of antiheroes to side with, but also believe that a nonhuman intelligence can capably capture and compel their imaginations?
  — Randy Boyagoda, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024

Last Updated: 10 Nov 2024