as in to compel
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
the problem is of your own making, so don't think that you can obligate me to help
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of obligate
The collective defense clause, if invoked by a member state, obligates all other members of the transatlantic alliance to treat an attack on one as an attack on all.
—
Lucia I Suarez Sang, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
Travelers are obligated to provide passwords when asked so officers can access the device.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
According to Castle, simple math suggests that the more fake streams the streaming companies are able to eradicate from their systems, the less money they’ll be obligated to dole out to labels.
—Kyle Eustice, VIBE.com, 30 Mar. 2026
Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images In broad strokes, a fiduciary is one who is legally obligated to act in the best interest of their clients.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for obligate
Lucia I Suarez Sang, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
Travelers are obligated to provide passwords when asked so officers can access the device.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
According to Castle, simple math suggests that the more fake streams the streaming companies are able to eradicate from their systems, the less money they’ll be obligated to dole out to labels.
—Kyle Eustice, VIBE.com, 30 Mar. 2026
Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images In broad strokes, a fiduciary is one who is legally obligated to act in the best interest of their clients.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for obligate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obligate
Verb
-
Discussions were had at those meetings, and every single thing that has happened has been compelled by council action.—
Jack Fink,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Even those who advocated for conservative positions were compelled to make their case in language amenable to the liberal sensibility.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In the mid-twentieth century, the US government experimented on poor Black men in Tuskegee, Alabama, to understand the life-cycle of syphilis; the men were coerced into remaining in their study for decades despite the fact that the disease’s cure, penicillin, had been discovered.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
30 Mar. 2026
-
And the folks for whom Live Nation is able to really coerce a lot of their economic opportunities, the venues that are afraid to get sideways with Live Nation.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Now, as China prioritizes renewable energy over coal, Yang is ahead of the change his fellow workers are being forced to confront.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Conflicting signals have set up a week in which investors are forced to position for starkly divergent outcomes.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The countries that are party to the CMS are legally obliged to protect species listed as at risk of extinction, conserve and restore their habitats, prevent obstacles to migration and cooperate with other range states.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Musk’s lawyers cited several Delaware Supreme Court case laws that protect against judge bias in cases and when judges are obliged to recuse themselves.—
Jacqueline Munis,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obligate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obligate. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
