enforce
to put or keep in force; compel obedience to: to enforce a rule; Traffic laws will be strictly enforced.
to obtain (payment, obedience, etc.) by force or compulsion.
to impose (a course of action) upon a person: The doctor enforced a strict dietary regimen.
to support (a demand, claim, etc.) by force: to enforce one's rights as a citizen.
to impress or urge (an argument, contention, etc.) forcibly; lay stress upon: He enforced his argument by adding details.
Origin of enforce
1Other words for enforce
Other words from enforce
- en·force·a·ble, adjective
- en·force·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- en·forc·ed·ly [en-fawr-sid-lee, -fohr-], /ɛnˈfɔr sɪd li, -ˈfoʊr-/, adverb
- en·forc·er, noun
- en·forc·ive, adjective
- half-en·forced, adjective
- non·en·force·a·ble, adjective
- non·en·forced, adjective
- non·en·for·ced·ly, adverb
- non·en·forc·ing, adjective
- pre·en·force, verb (used with object), pre·en·forced, pre·en·forc·ing.
- qua·si-en·forced, adjective
- un·en·force·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- un·en·force·a·ble, adjective
- un·en·forced, adjective
- un·en·forc·ed·ly, adverb
- well-en·forced, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use enforce in a sentence
Many sheriffs in the area have said they don’t plan on enforcing the law, either.
Capacity limits in bars or mask requirements in stores can be enforced through fines and closures.
At dinner parties and game nights, casual American life is fueling the coronavirus surge | Karin Brulliard | November 12, 2020 | Washington PostSwipe them all, turn an event that normally signifies the arrival of spring into an appetizer for Thanksgiving, and the 2020 Masters will have an entirely unprecedented feel, a pandemic-enforced flavor and visuals all its own.
Masters golfers won’t see the blooms, but they will really miss hearing the roars | Barry Svrluga | November 12, 2020 | Washington PostBut, of course, there’s a big difference between having a noise code and enforcing it.
Please Get Your Noise Out of My Ears (Ep. 439) | Stephen J. Dubner | November 12, 2020 | FreakonomicsE-commerce sales, which account for less than 5% of all retail sales in India, skyrocketed during the pandemic after New Delhi enforced a two-month nationwide lockdown.
Indian logistics startup Xpressbees raises $110 million | Manish Singh | November 9, 2020 | TechCrunch
Rick Hasen, a professor at University of California, Irvine, dismissed the Mississippi statute as essentially unenforceable.
Thus, a son worked for his father on his father's farm under an unenforceable contract with his uncle.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney BollesThe document was plainly one-sided and would be regarded in an English court as against public policy and unenforceable.
The Foundations of Japan | J.W. Robertson ScottThe statute thus changed the common law wherein such contracts were merely unenforceable but not criminal.
It is generally held to be unenforceable if the insured suicided while insane.
The Statute of Frauds does not invalidate a verbal guarantee, but renders it unenforceable by action.
British Dictionary definitions for enforce
/ (ɪnˈfɔːs) /
to ensure observance of or obedience to (a law, decision, etc)
to impose (obedience, loyalty, etc) by or as by force
to emphasize or reinforce (an argument, demand, etc)
Derived forms of enforce
- enforceable, adjective
- enforceability, noun
- enforcedly (ɪnˈfɔːsɪdlɪ), adverb
- enforcement, noun
- enforcer, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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