impelling 1 of 2

adjective

as in compelling

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

impelling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of impel
1
as in driving
to set or keep in motion gasoline impels a car's engine

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forcing
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure I felt impelled to tell the truth, however painful it might be

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 impelling
Verb
The bedroom selfie Flora secretly sends her the morning after is the final straw impelling Carla to file for divorce. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026 This is a very forward-impelling perspective to come to. — Elizabeth Mata, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impelling
  1. compelling
  2. driving
  3. forcing
  4. conspicuous
  5. moving
  6. coercing
  7. striking
  8. activating
Adjective
  • For now, the trial provides compelling evidence that a cancer’s individuality can become a therapeutic opportunity.
    — Mike McRae October 25, New Atlas, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Those who create compelling reasons for people to come together in the physical world have an enormous runway ahead.
    — Davis Noell, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of compelling
Verb
  • That's primarily the point, said Idaho House Majority Leader Jason Monks, a Republican who sponsored the measure as a means of driving up voter turnout during the midterm elections.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Technique works well in testing This strategy optimizes both the transport and perovskite layers together, driving efficiency and durability to record levels.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of driving
Verb
  • Cooper has led wire-to-wire over Republican opponent Michael Whatley, maintaining wide polling and fundraising leads and forcing key GOP super PACs to pause spending in the race to focus elsewhere.
    — Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The question is going to voters because opponents gathered petition signatures forcing a referendum.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of forcing
Adjective
  • When the cleanup began, AI writing was often betrayed by conspicuous clichés.
    — Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Birds are conspicuous then – singing, defending territories, building nests and raising young.
    — Amy L. Scarpignato, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of conspicuous
Verb
  • The Sun enters your 6th House, beginning a month focused on routines, responsibilities, health, work, and the systems that keep everything moving.
    — Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Position for the companies that are moving from cost cutting into building.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of moving
Verb
  • In lawsuits filed last year, Chegg and PMC accused Google of abusing its monopoly power by coercing publishers into supplying content for AI Overviews for free, or risk disappearing from search results.
    — Emma Roth, The Verge, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Playing that cat, a work camp warden coercing Hawke’s character into smuggling gold through the wilderness, is none other than Russell Crowe.
    — Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of coercing
Adjective
  • The design plays with geometry, reflection and depth—think warm wood panelling, bronzed mirrors, walnut tables, brass accents and luminous geometric details, including a striking hexagonal counter.
    — Jaclyn DeGiorgio, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The timing is striking, since the midterm elections are less than two weeks away and polls show Democrats with an edge in many key races.
    — Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of striking
Verb
  • Those cases often centered on devices mistakenly activating or capturing speech that was not intended as a command.
    — MacKenzie Sigalos,Annie Palmer, CNBC, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Semaglutide mimics its activity by activating GLP-1 receptors in the body.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of activating

Browse Nearby Words

impelled
impelling
impels
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Impelling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impelling. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All