urge
to push or force along; impel with force or vigor: to urge the cause along.
to drive with incitement to speed or effort: to urge dogs on with shouts.
to press, push, or hasten (the course, activities, etc.): to urge one's escape.
to impel, constrain, or move to some action: urged by necessity.
to endeavor to induce or persuade, as by entreaties; entreat or exhort earnestly: to urge a person to greater caution.
to press (something) upon the attention: to urge a claim.
to insist on, allege, or assert with earnestness: to urge the need of haste.
to press by persuasion or recommendation, as for acceptance, performance, or use; recommend or advocate earnestly: to urge a plan of action.
to exert a driving or impelling force; give an impulse to haste or action: Hunger urges.
to make entreaties or earnest recommendations.
to press arguments or allegations, as against a person, action, or cause: The senator urged against the confirmation of the appointment.
an act of urging; impelling action, influence, or force; impulse.
an involuntary, natural, or instinctive impulse: the sex urge.
Origin of urge
1Other words for urge
Opposites for urge
Other words from urge
- urg·ing·ly, adverb
- o·ver·urge, verb, o·ver·urged, o·ver·urg·ing.
- un·urged, adjective
- un·urg·ing, adjective
Words Nearby urge
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use urge in a sentence
The team reasoned this urge might stem from natural instincts to hunt, or from a need for cats to supplement their diet.
Meatier meals and more playtime might reduce cats’ toll on wildlife | Jonathan Lambert | February 11, 2021 | Science NewsFor so long, I thought, “I want a seat at the table,” but now I have this urge to knock over the table.
The downside is you won’t be able to look at an untended tree again without seeing a wayward branch and feeling the urge to fix it.
It’s tree-pruning season. Here’s how to do it without resorting to ‘crape murder.’ | Adrian Higgins | January 27, 2021 | Washington PostYou have to control the urge to panic and maintain some sense of inner peace.
How to survive three days in the wild | By Keith McCafferty/Field & Stream | January 26, 2021 | Popular-ScienceHe felt an urge to return to the District for the first time after watching the inauguration on television Wednesday night.
The fortress around downtown D.C. is being dismantled. But heightened security may remain. | Emily Davies, Michael Brice-Saddler, Peter Hermann | January 21, 2021 | Washington Post
I need to resist my urge to talk them into my truth, just so I can feel more comfortable and secure.
For instance, how do you balance honesty with any protective urge?
Daphne Merkin on Lena Dunham, Book Criticism, and Self-Examination | Mindy Farabee | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd not that anyone would know I have a self-protective urge, but I do have one.
Daphne Merkin on Lena Dunham, Book Criticism, and Self-Examination | Mindy Farabee | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOn the other hand, I have an equally strong urge to tell secrets.
Daphne Merkin on Lena Dunham, Book Criticism, and Self-Examination | Mindy Farabee | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut not even the threat of death can suppress the urge to live vicariously through Jack Dawson and James Bond.
North Korea’s Secret Movie Bootleggers: How Western Films Make It Into the Hermit Kingdom | Lizzie Crocker | December 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd I have given this tedious detail to urge and embolden others to remonstrate against it.
Glances at Europe | Horace GreeleyIn excusing the Freedom of your Satyr, you urge that it galls no body, because nobody minds it enough to be mended by it.
A Letter from Mr. Cibber to Mr. Pope | Colley CibberBut this is quite enough to justify the inconsiderable expense which the experiment I urge would involve.
Glances at Europe | Horace GreeleyThe judicious father saw that it would be utterly unavailing to urge the suit, and the matter was dropped.
Madame Roland, Makers of History | John S. C. AbbottAt first the girl declined to follow advice which instinctively she distrusted, and Sir Lucien was too clever to urge it upon her.
Dope | Sax Rohmer
British Dictionary definitions for urge
/ (ɜːdʒ) /
(tr) to plead, press, or move (someone to do something): we urged him to surrender
(tr; may take a clause as object) to advocate or recommend earnestly and persistently; plead or insist on: to urge the need for safety
(tr) to impel, drive, or hasten onwards: he urged the horses on
(tr) archaic, or literary to stimulate, excite, or incite
a strong impulse, inner drive, or yearning
Origin of urge
1Collins 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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