Word of the Day

: March 20, 2007

perforce

adverb per-FORSS

What It Means

: by force of circumstances

perforce in Context

Lorel and Curt's tiny vineyard produces a limited quantity of top-quality chardonnays that are perforce rather pricey.

Did You Know?

English speakers borrowed "par force" from Anglo-French in the 14th century. "Par" meant "by" (from Latin "per") and the Anglo-French word "force" had the same meaning as its English equivalent, which was already in use by then. At first, "perforce" meant quite literally "by physical coercion." That meaning is no longer used today, but it was still prevalent in William Shakespeare's lifetime (1564-1616). "He rush'd into my house and took perforce my ring away," wrote the Bard in The Comedy of Errors. The "force of circumstances" sense of "perforce" had also come into use by Shakespeare's day. In Henry IV, Part 2, we find ". . . your health; the which, if you give o'er to stormy passion, must perforce decay."