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definitions

imperative

[im-per-uh-tiv]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR imperative ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

absolutely necessary or required; unavoidable: It is imperative that we leave.
of the nature of or expressing a command; commanding.
Grammar. noting or pertaining to the mood of the verb used in commands, requests, etc., as in Listen! Go!Compare indicative(def 2), subjunctive(def 1).

noun

Origin of imperative

1520–30; < Late Latin imperātivus, equivalent to Latin imperāt(us) past participle of imperāre to impose, order, command (im- im-1 + -per- (combining form of parāre to fur-nish (with), produce, obtain, prepare) + -ātus -ate1) + -īvus -ive
Related formsim·per·a·tive·ly, adverbim·per·a·tive·ness, nounnon·im·per·a·tive, adjectivenon·im·per·a·tive·ly, adverbnon·im·per·a·tive·ness, nounun·im·per·a·tive, adjectiveun·im·per·a·tive·ly, adverb
Can be confusedimperative imperial imperious

Synonyms for imperative

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR imperative ON THESAURUS.COM
1. inescapable; indispensable, essential; exigent, compelling.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for imperativeness

vicissitude, contingency, requirement, dilemma, distress, juncture, want, pass, need, plight, crisis, fix, scrape, jam, crossroad, duress, hardship, emergency, pressure, necessity

Examples from the Web for imperativeness

Historical Examples of imperativeness

  • The man's voice leaped to a higher pitch and was sharp with imperativeness.

  • There was a touch of imperativeness in the hurriedly written little note that indefinitely appealed to him.

    The Silver Poppy

    Arthur Stringer

  • The very homeliness and obviousness of the duty causes us often to lose sight of its imperativeness and necessity.

  • Both had been troubled and roused, and they were drawing together with the sharpness and imperativeness of uniting elements.

    The Game

    Jack London

  • If on that subject he had only exercised the imperativeness customary with him on others, all might have been revealed.

British Dictionary definitions for imperativeness

imperative

adjective

extremely urgent or important; essential
peremptory or authoritativean imperative tone of voice
Also: imperatival (ɪmˌpɛrəˈtaɪvəl) grammar denoting a mood of verbs used in giving orders, making requests, etc. In English the verb root without any inflections is the usual form, as for example leave in Leave me alone

noun

something that is urgent or essential
an order or command
grammar
  1. the imperative mood
  2. a verb in this mood
Derived Formsimperatively, adverbimperativeness, noun

Word Origin for imperative

C16: from Late Latin imperātīvus, from Latin imperāre to command
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
Word Origin and History for imperativeness

imperative

adj.

1520s, from Late Latin imperativus "pertaining to a command," from imperatus "commanded," past participle of imperare "to command, to requisition," from assimilated form of in- "into, in" (see in- (2)) + parare "prepare" (see pare).

imperative

n.

mid-15c., in grammar; later "something imperative" (c.1600), from Old French imperatif and directly from Late Latin imperativus (see imperative (adj.)).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
imperativeness in Culture

imperative

A grammatical category describing verbs that command or request: “Leave town by tonight”; “Please hand me the spoon.”

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.