compel
Americanverb (used with object)
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compels,
present (3rd person singular)
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compelled,
past participle, past
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compelling
present participle
verb (used without object)
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compels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
compelled,
past participle, past
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compelling
present participle
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to use force.
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to have a powerful and irresistible effect, influence, etc.
verb
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to cause (someone) by force (to be or do something)
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to obtain by force; exact
to compel obedience
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to overpower or subdue
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archaic to herd or drive together
Synonym Usage
Compel, impel agree in the idea of using physical or other force to cause something to be done. Compel means to constrain someone, in some way, to yield or to do what one wishes: to compel a recalcitrant debtor to pay; Fate compels us to face danger and trouble. Impel may mean literally to push forward, but is usually applied figuratively, meaning to provide a strong motive or incentive toward a certain end: Wind impels a ship. Curiosity impels me to ask.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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compellernoun
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precompelverb (used with object)
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compellableadjective
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compellentadjective
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uncompellableadjective
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compellablyadverb
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compellinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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compelsimple
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compelssimple
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have compelledperfect
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has compelledperfect
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am compellingprogressive
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are compellingprogressive
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is compellingprogressive
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have been compellingperfect progressive
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has been compellingperfect progressive
Past
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compelledsimple
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had compelledperfect
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was compellingprogressive
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were compellingprogressive
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had been compellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of compel
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English compellen, from Anglo-French or directly from Latin compellere “to crowd, force,” equivalent to com- com- + pellere “to push, drive”
Explanation
Compel means to force or drive someone to do something. Even if you don't like toast, when you visit the toast-eating natives of Shrintakook Island, you'll be compelled to eat it, or they will not trust you. You don't want to be compelled to go to a classical music concert if you'd rather listen to rap. School officials might be upset if a winter storm compels them to cancel classes, but you'd be okay with that. A compelling mystery forces you to pay attention because you want to find out "whodunit."
Vocabulary lists containing compel
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 1–6
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The Bill of Rights
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Loss-making steel production in China will likely compel China Mineral Resources Group, which represents Chinese steelmakers, to push harder to structurally lower iron-ore prices with iron-ore miners.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Jones' letter comes months after Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley urged the government to compel all phone companies to make stolen devices "unusable bricks".
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
He instructed Southern postmasters to record and publicize the names of even individual subscribers to abolitionist newspapers to encourage intimidation by their neighbors and perhaps even compel them to leave the South.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
The order could govern federal usage; it could not compel Canada or the rest of the world to play along.
From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026
“Do not set your will against the Augurs, Keris Veturia. You will fail. You can come willingly to the amphitheater, or I can compel you. Which shall it be?”
From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir
It’s not just their goony sense of humor that compels them to make silly intro videos and do funny accents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026
A subpoena compels a party to release specified internal documents or information.
From BBC ● May 27, 2026
It is, as yet, a dud — a $2,000 slot machine that pays out a Community Note dressed as a verdict, in a process that compels nothing and binds no one.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2026
Fragmentation compels banks and asset managers to localize balance sheets and hold excess capital, constraining cross-border intermediation and dampening growth.
From Barron's ● Mar. 4, 2026
“I wonder what compels a fully grown man to surround himself with playthings,” he said.
From "The Stars Beneath Our Feet" by David Barclay Moore
Yaël Braun-Pivet, the president of France's National Assembly, said after the visit: "I refuse to allow women to be compelled to step aside in order to meet the demands of foreign visitors."
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Her floral, flowing clothes and romantic aesthetic are not things she feels compelled to shed in order to be taken seriously as a chef.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026
Because another appeals court ruled against Kalshi, the justices may feel compelled to resolve the dispute in the coming months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
"If a woman is compelled to struggle so hard for her daughters' education, it shows that government education schemes are not reaching people adequately," he said.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
It was the best music my brothers and I had ever heard, with gorgeous cascading chords and an electrifying ragged timing, which compelled the audience to get up and dance.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
For 10 years now — actually, since around the time streaming decisively overtook people’s listening habits — these Beatles releases have made a pretty compelling case for the collectible physical object.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
One wouldn’t call him a charming personality, but he is compelling in his absolute confidence in himself and his ideas.
From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026
Saturated with convincing detail about the world of classical music and film scoring, the movie is a compelling character study marred only by a certain episodic quality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
Hartnett’s hunch appears to be playing out as several other commentators in the market have also decided the yields on offer in fixed-income markets are compelling.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
The durability of the empire is compelling evidence that the assets outweighed the liabilities.
From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
