obligated

American  

[ob-li-gey-tid] / ˈɒb lɪˌgeɪ tɪd /

adjective

1. bound by law or regulation, moral principle, duty, etc.; obliged.

   My supervisors talked with me regularly about my ambitions and struggles, not because they felt obligated, but because they truly cared.

2. (of funds, property, etc.) pledged, committed, or bound, as to meet an obligation.

   If a parent is unable to pay the obligated amount, they are free to request the court to modify the child support order.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of obligate.

Other Word Forms

• nonobligated adjective
• quasi-obligated adjective
• unobligated adjective

Etymology

Origin of obligated

First recorded in 1730–40; obligate ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ); for the adjective senses; obligate ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

I didn’t know why I felt obligated to explain myself at all, but I couldn’t very well share my real reason.

From Literature

Ethir said she believes the department has not provided all the records it is legally obligated to give the officers.

From Los Angeles Times

Sri Lanka’s defense secretary said the country is obligated to make sure the Iranians it now holds don’t join the war.

From The Wall Street Journal

He said he loved her but felt obligated to keep his parents, and the wider public, in the dark until she was properly educated, and he had returned from the Arctic in triumph.

From Literature

Under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, the U.S. is obligated to provide weapons for Taiwan to defend itself.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• compelled
• duty-bound
• enslaved
• indebted
• obliged