mandatory

[ man-duh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee ]

adjective

1. authoritatively ordered; obligatory; compulsory:

   It is mandatory that all students take two years of math.

   Synonyms: exigent, requisite

2. pertaining to, of the nature of, or containing a command.
3. Law. permitting no option; not to be disregarded or modified:

   a mandatory clause.

4. having received a mandate, as a nation.

noun

, plural man·da·to·ries.

1. mandatary.

mandatory

/ -trɪ; ˈmændətərɪ /

adjective

1. having the nature or powers of a mandate
2. obligatory; compulsory
3. (of a state) having received a mandate over some territory

noun

1. Also calledmandatary a person or state holding a mandate

Derived Forms

• ˈmandatorily, adverb

Other Words From

• manda·tori·ly adverb
• non·manda·tory adjective noun plural nonmandatories
• un·manda·tory adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of mandatory¹

From the Late Latin word mandātōrius, dating back to 1655–65. See mandate, -tory ¹

Example Sentences

Since the programs are not mandatory, though, it’s unclear how popular they will become and the extent to which officers will participate.

From Vox

Soon after they left, a mandatory evacuation order went into effect.

From Washington Blade

Apple now says that, while developers will be able to implement this notification and request for permission, doing so will no longer be mandatory when iOS 14 launches sometime in the next couple of months.

From Ars Technica

That same study asked travelers what they needed to feel comfortable boarding an airplane, and the top three responses were mandatory masks, seating spaced six feet apart, and pre-boarding temperature checks.

From Fortune

The surveys are not mandatory, so employees can opt out if they choose.

From Digiday

Now Wisconsin is considering making it mandatory for parents who adopt overseas to have their children “re-adopted” in the state.

From The Daily Beast

For example, at age 10, he completed the local two-year mandatory preparatory program in just one year.

From The Daily Beast

And Americans overwhelmingly support eliminating mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug offenders.

From The Daily Beast

Thankfully, testing performers for STDs is mandatory—or so we thought.

From The Daily Beast

Suspicion of exposure to Ebola, for example, is sufficient to justify mandatory isolation.

From The Daily Beast

The requirement of conformity to this higher conventional standard becomes mandatory.

From Project Gutenberg

But the task has seemed mandatory as the manners of a people can not otherwise be fully understood.

From Project Gutenberg

German New Guinea (now a British mandatory) lies not far away.

From Project Gutenberg

At my final interview he said that he had had difficulty in preventing Congress from making the retaliatory resolution mandatory.

From Project Gutenberg

This was from some one acting as President Colbrith's secretary, and its wording was concisely mandatory.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• binding
• compulsory
• de rigueur
• essential
• forced
• imperative
• indispensable
• involuntary
• obligatory