1
as in compelling
having the power to persuade
made a very forceful argument against going to war
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in aggressive
marked by or uttered with forcefulness
kept asking until I gave a very forceful and blunt "no"
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in strong
not showing weakness or uncertainty
took a forceful stand on the highly controversial issue
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4
as in influential
having power over the minds or behavior of others
a forceful speaker whose words moved the audience to tears
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of forceful
The pair voted ‘no’ in a rare and forceful show of public opposition toward a fellow Democrat’s bill.
—
Calmatters, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
Pope Leo marked Holocaust Remembrance Day with a forceful plea for a world free of antisemitism, prejudice, and persecution.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Come to think of it, a few especially forceful personalities fueled much of the clashing college curmudgeons economy.
—Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
In an opinion accompanying her order, Reyes issued a forceful rebuke of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's decision to end the TPS policy for Haitians.
—Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, 2 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for forceful
Calmatters, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
Pope Leo marked Holocaust Remembrance Day with a forceful plea for a world free of antisemitism, prejudice, and persecution.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Come to think of it, a few especially forceful personalities fueled much of the clashing college curmudgeons economy.
—Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
In an opinion accompanying her order, Reyes issued a forceful rebuke of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's decision to end the TPS policy for Haitians.
—Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News, 2 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for forceful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forceful
Adjective
-
Profit margins for banks and card networks, and there is no compelling public policy reason to protect those.—
Carter Dougherty,
Mercury News,
7 Feb. 2026
-
The Wall Street investment bank said companies including Boot Barn are compelling, and offer further upside.—
Michael Bloom,
CNBC,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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In the meantime, an unstable government could become more rather than less aggressive, not least to keep younger hard-liners from rebelling.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
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Wiener helped push two new California laws last year — the No Secret Police Act and the No Vigilantes Act — in the wake of intense and aggressive immigration enforcement by masked ICE and other federal agents in California and around the country.—
Kevin Rector,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Among the recovered materials, dysprosium, ytterbium, and erbium are considered high-value due to strong demand and limited substitutes, while yttrium and gadolinium are widely used in electronics, lighting, and healthcare.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Feb. 2026
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Paris Reuters — French wine and spirits exports fell last year to their lowest volume in at least 25 years as US tariffs and Chinese duties hit sales and a strong euro made some alcohol more expensive, industry group FEVS said on Tuesday, warning of no imminent relief.—
Reuters 9 hr ago,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Many consider Hunt to be the most well-rounded candidate, given her credentials as a former journalist, her familiarity with the BBC, track record of backing hits like Slow Horses and Sherlock, and her experience at one of the world’s most influential tech companies.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
5 Feb. 2026
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Online, conservatives have threatened to boycott the Super Bowl and the NFL more broadly, with influential voices like Newsmax host Greg Kelly and Tomi Lahren openly criticizing the league for choosing Bad Bunny as the performer.—
Lisa Respers France,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Experts say the rise of AI has dramatically lowered the barrier to fraud, allowing scammers to create convincing websites, clone official logos, and even replicate QR codes from legitimate sources.—
Maria Salette Ontiveros,
Dallas Morning News,
5 Feb. 2026
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Andrews, who was not involved in the Kanzi study, said the results were convincing.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Chris Seibert was emphatic in his praise of Stangel, the rest of the staff and the players.—
Michael Osipoff,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
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The Seahawks, coming off a dramatic NFC Championship Game victory over Stafford and the Rams, were clearly the NFL’s best team this season, and their Super Bowl triumph served as an emphatic validation.—
Michael Silver,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Gro-Low sumac performs best in full sun and tolerates partial shade, but will become less vigorous as the shade deepens.—
Tim Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Jan. 2026
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For many patients, vigorous physical activity isn’t realistic during treatment.—
Avi Patel,
Hartford Courant,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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My thinking ultimately derived from my response to Slate and NPR’s new Black film canon project, which was an authoritative list of 50 films.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2026
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Duah’s authoritative finish in the 68th minute stood as the largest goal of the two matches.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Forceful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forceful. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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