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Synonym Chooser

How does the verb enjoin contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of enjoin are bid, charge, command, direct, instruct, and order. While all these words mean "to issue orders," enjoin implies giving an order or direction authoritatively and urgently and often with admonition or solicitude.

a sign enjoining patrons to be quiet

When can bid be used instead of enjoin?

Although the words bid and enjoin have much in common, bid suggests giving orders peremptorily (as to children or servants).

she bade him be seated

How do charge and enjoin relate to one another?

Charge adds to enjoin an implication of imposing as a duty or responsibility.

charged by the President with a secret mission

How are the words command and order related as synonyms of enjoin?

Both command and order imply authority and usually some degree of formality and impersonality; command stresses official exercise of authority.

a general commanding troops

How does the word direct relate to its synonym instruct, in the sense of enjoin?

Direct and instruct both connote expectation of obedience and usually concern specific points of procedure or method, instruct sometimes implying greater explicitness or formality.

directed her assistant to hold all calls
the judge instructed the jury to ignore the remark

Where would order be a reasonable alternative to enjoin?

While the synonyms order and enjoin are close in meaning, order may suggest peremptory or arbitrary exercise.

ordered his employees about like slaves

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 enjoin Four courts have now enjoined the order, and have taken the unusual step of ruling from the bench in each case. Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 22 Feb. 2025 The court ruled in the plaintiffs favor, enjoining the Executive Order. Solcyré Burga, TIME, 19 Feb. 2025 As a result, the court enjoined the government from enforcing the CTA against the plaintiffs and their related entities while the lawsuit continued. Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 11 Feb. 2025 As a result, the court enjoined the government from enforcing the CTA against the Plaintiffs, Samantha Smith and Robert Means, and their related entities while the lawsuit continues. Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 6 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for enjoin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enjoin
Verb
  • In one letter, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee demanded a list of every citizen detained during the new administration.
    Nicole Foy, ProPublica, 14 Apr. 2025
  • At special hearings organized by Santa Clara County Supervisor Sylvia Arenas and her former colleague Cindy Chavez, Kraft and dozens of colleagues demanded reforms and a rebalancing of a system that left too many children in dangerous homes.
    Julia Prodis Sulek, Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Reports emerged shortly after over the school’s emergency alert system, sending students and faculty into a panic as they were instructed to seek shelter.
    Milena Malaver, Miami Herald, 18 Apr. 2025
  • Hasn’t instructed the front office to sign one free agent.
    Doug Haller, New York Times, 18 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Louisiana’s legislation might also violate the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits laws that retroactively increase the severity of a person’s criminal sentence, according to several legal scholars.
    Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 10 Apr. 2025
  • That goal is also the impetus behind Senate Bill 19, legislation that would prohibit taxpayer dollars from being used to pay for contract lobbyists.
    Patrick Gleason, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • That case, in federal court in New Jersey, seeks an order that would require Khalil's release and the rescinding of the Rubio determination.
    Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2025
  • The premise requires both actors not just to showcase a fiery vulnerability, but to stew in these feelings for extended periods, which benefits from Nabulsi’s straightforward, no-frills presentation.
    Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 11 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • The shift comes after reports that the cuts were ordered by Jeremy Lewin, a close ally of Elon Musk, who now oversees USAID under Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.
    Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Apr. 2025
  • Robert King, 35, who was charged with transmitting interstate threats in federal court on Monday, was ordered to stay in detention by U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Toliver after a hearing in Dallas on Wednesday afternoon, Fox News confirmed.
    Elizabeth Pritchett, FOXNews.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Ord also forbade any state money to be paid to the families of deceased Confederate soldiers if the same amounts were not also made available to the families of Union soldiers.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Apr. 2025
  • Since 1954, the village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape has had a law forbidding flying saucers from landing in, taking off, or flying over its vineyards.
    Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen, Robb Report, 18 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • This casserole is creamy, cheesy, and is one the whole family (especially the grandkids) request time after time.
    Nellah Bailey McGough, Southern Living, 19 Apr. 2025
  • As his May 5 trial looms, Combes earlier this week requested a postponement of the legal proceeding.
    Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 19 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • The percentage tells the public how much of the fire perimeter is believed to not go beyond the control lines.
    CA WILDFIRE BOT, Sacbee.com, 21 Apr. 2025
  • Trump told the brief story behind the biblical holiday centered on Jesus Christ, who, according to Christian tradition, was crucified on a cross and then rose from the dead.
    Jenny Goldsberry, The Washington Examiner, 20 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Enjoin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enjoin. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.

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