compulsory
adjective
com·pul·so·ry
kəm-ˈpəls-rē 
-ˈpəl-sə-
2
: coercive, compelling
compulsory measures
Examples of compulsory in a Sentence
To free the mind and the heart from compulsory religious confession and observance was good for all three interested parties: the state, the church and the people.
—
Jon Meacham, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2009
So he wants a private life and no photographs and nobody to know his home address. I can dig it, I can relate to that (but, like he should try it when it's compulsory instead of a free-choice option).
—Salman Rushdie, New York Times Book Review, 14 Jan. 1990
He began to resent the compulsory attendance at the boring factory meetings.
—James Reston, Jr., Time, 28 Nov. 1988
compulsory retirement at age 70
Jon Meacham, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2009
So he wants a private life and no photographs and nobody to know his home address. I can dig it, I can relate to that (but, like he should try it when it's compulsory instead of a free-choice option).
—Salman Rushdie, New York Times Book Review, 14 Jan. 1990
He began to resent the compulsory attendance at the boring factory meetings.
—James Reston, Jr., Time, 28 Nov. 1988
compulsory retirement at age 70
Recent Examples on the Web
Jack would begin a compulsory ninety-day psychiatric evaluation in the California Institution for Men in Chino, a rough place known to be brutal to younger inmates for the same possession charges.
—Susannah Cahalan, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2025
Now, Weight Watchers isn’t exactly facing bankruptcy because people everywhere are suddenly looking inward and agreeing to throw off the shackles of compulsory thinness.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 15 Apr. 2025
There are multiple compulsory check-ins each day at one’s bunk, overseen by correction officers.
—Julia Jacobs, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
South Koreans aged 18-30 face some of the worst relative poverty rates among OECD countries and the perception among young men is that 18-month compulsory national service puts them at a marked disadvantage to their female peers, who are exempt.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for compulsory
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Susannah Cahalan, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2025
Now, Weight Watchers isn’t exactly facing bankruptcy because people everywhere are suddenly looking inward and agreeing to throw off the shackles of compulsory thinness.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 15 Apr. 2025
There are multiple compulsory check-ins each day at one’s bunk, overseen by correction officers.
—Julia Jacobs, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
South Koreans aged 18-30 face some of the worst relative poverty rates among OECD countries and the perception among young men is that 18-month compulsory national service puts them at a marked disadvantage to their female peers, who are exempt.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for compulsory
Cite this Entry
“Compulsory.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/compulsory. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
compulsory
adjective
com·pul·so·ry
kəm-ˈpəls-(ə-)rē
1
: required by or as if by law
compulsory education
2
: having the power of forcing someone to do something
a compulsory law
Legal Definition
compulsory
adjective
com·pul·so·ry
kəm-ˈpəl-sə-rē
1
: required or compelled by law : mandatory, obligatory
compulsory arbitration
compulsory insurance
specifically
: required to be brought or asserted in a pleading because of having arisen from the transaction or occurrence that is the subject of litigation
a compulsory counterclaim
compulsory reconvention
compare elective, permissive
2
: using compulsion : compelling
compulsory measures
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