compelled

[ kuhm-peld ]

adjective

1. secured or brought about by force:

   Statements made in a compelled interview may not be used in a criminal proceeding.

2. forced or driven to a particular course of action, often by an irresistible internal urge:

   I haven't felt so compelled to learn as much as I can about something since my fascination with Slavic folk music!

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of compel ( def ).

Other Words From

• un·com·pelled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of compelled¹

compel ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

County officials made moves in two separate lawsuits this week in which Voice of San Diego is seeking to compel them to release information under the California Records Act related to its handling of the public health crisis.

From Voice of San Diego

While officials have said they aren’t targeting the amount that Apple charges, the focus on the payment system could also compel Apple to offer alternative payments providers to developers.

From Fortune

The startling surge has compelled new efforts in some parts of the country to slow the rampant virus.

From Washington Post

These new rules would, among other things, prevent self-preferential treatment and compel the largest technology companies to share data with competitors.

From Search Engine Land

I am compelled to see people individually and to value their specific stories.

From Washington Post

She felt compelled to come forward because the allegations in that case seem similar to her own regarding Cosby.

From The Daily Beast

And, de Blasio told reporters he felt compelled to make a particular statement.

From The Daily Beast

As a former arts teacher, she feels compelled to help the now-hysterical young boy.

From The Daily Beast

Creator Rod Serling was compelled by the need “not to just entertain but to enlighten.”

From The Daily Beast

But now many of the rich feel compelled to “make a difference.”

From The Daily Beast

He couldn't sell them; he couldn't burn them; he was even compelled to insure them, to his intense disgust.

From Project Gutenberg

She set off down Trafalgar Road in the mist and the rain, glad that she had been compelled to walk.

From Project Gutenberg

Before daybreak we had ridden five and twenty miles, but had been compelled to abandon two more guns.

From Project Gutenberg

Tatham says, "Even the tavern keepers were compelled to exchange a dinner for a few pounds of tobacco."

From Project Gutenberg

The weapons, the most unusual weapons, we are reluctantly compelled to accept under protest.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• afraid
• averse
• evasive
• forced
• loath
• reluctant
• resistant
• unenthusiastic