as in pressure
the use of power to impose one's will on another
in that class I read books under compulsion that I ordinarily wouldn't have considered
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Recent Examples of compulsion
Gondry expands his eclectic filmography with this rejuvenating fantasia, revealing another facet of his creativity (and confessing a certain compulsion; when Maya declines to provide a title for a next short, his reaction is priceless).
—
Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Feb. 2025
Overcoming the compulsions, the siren’s call, the lowest-common-denominator, tabloid, casino effect of everything in a very competitive attention environment where we’re driven toward the lowest common denominator.
—Sean Illing, Vox, 1 Feb. 2025
The compulsion for constant doing defends you from feeling unpleasant emotions and gives you safety and security even if the task itself is satisfying.
—Bryan Robinson, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
The characters are not wholly irredeemable, and some do arrive through meditation and self-reflection at meaningful answers about their compulsions, even as others remain unwilling to consider such questions about their motivations (and how their actions affect other people).
—Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for compulsion
Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Feb. 2025
Overcoming the compulsions, the siren’s call, the lowest-common-denominator, tabloid, casino effect of everything in a very competitive attention environment where we’re driven toward the lowest common denominator.
—Sean Illing, Vox, 1 Feb. 2025
The compulsion for constant doing defends you from feeling unpleasant emotions and gives you safety and security even if the task itself is satisfying.
—Bryan Robinson, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
The characters are not wholly irredeemable, and some do arrive through meditation and self-reflection at meaningful answers about their compulsions, even as others remain unwilling to consider such questions about their motivations (and how their actions affect other people).
—Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for compulsion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compulsion
Noun
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However, commercial pressures meant lyricists often wrote intros based solely on show titles, leading to more generic hooks, as seen in the show El Kaboos.—
Hala Mustafa,
Billboard,
28 Mar. 2025
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The San Diego Padres know pressure is on to make the playoffs this year.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, frontline institutions are facing severe resource constraints: The World Food Programme is facing an $8.1 billion shortfall leading to the closure of its Southern Africa office, and slashed rations for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.—
Daphne Ewing-Chow,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
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That’s partly due to the constraints of the U.S. health care system.—
Eleanor Rivera,
The Conversation,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The call came as Trump has declared a trade war on Canada and has threatened to use economic coercion to make Canada the 51st U.S. state, a position that has infuriated Canadians.—
Rob Gillies,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Mar. 2025
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Moscow stepped up its economic coercion, political meddling, and military aggression to stymie its neighbors’ progress toward democracy and European integration.—
Alexander Vindman,
Foreign Affairs,
27 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Their violence — in medieval bestiaries, unicorns are regularly said to have beef with elephants and take them down by goring their bellies — is contrasted with their gentleness towards maidens and innate understanding of purity.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
28 Mar. 2025
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The bonfire of the Teslas: Political violence and the Left That will be a serious slog over the next three-plus years, with the Democratic brand in poor shape.—
David Mark,
The Washington Examiner,
28 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Compulsion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compulsion. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
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