Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

duty-bound

British  

adjective

  1. morally obliged as a matter of duty

"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
duty bound Idioms  

  1. Obliged, as in You're duty bound to help your little brother. [c. 1900]

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.

That distance recurs often when he becomes a character in the story — almost as if he feels duty-bound to report his actions, but is unwilling to offer insight about himself.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2025

To Williams, it hinted at a more menacing scenario — at secret ties between those who threaten the rule of the law and those duty-bound to enforce it.

From Salon • Jan. 7, 2025

Sometimes, a patient makes an unconventional choice, but if the patient is competent and the request is fundamentally reasonable, the physician is duty-bound to comply.

From Slate • Aug. 20, 2024

“I am therefore duty-bound to reject your recusal request,” he wrote.

From Seattle Times • May 29, 2024

Then, suddenly, with one of her most audible sighs, she stood up and, grim and duty-bound, moved into the washstand area Zooey had vacated.

From "Franny and Zooey" by J. D. Salinger

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.