English Dictionary
Definition of “compulsion”
compulsion (kəmˈpʌlʃən
)
Definitions
noun
- the act of compelling or the state of being compelled
- something that compels
- psychiatry an inner drive that causes a person to perform actions, often of a trivial and repetitive nature, against his or her will See also obsession
Word Origin
C15: from Old French, from Latin compellere to compel
Usage examples
The muscles in her neck twitched and stood out in cords as she fought the compulsion to bend her head.
Garth Nix, LIRAEL: DAUGHTER OF THE CLAYR (2001)The procedure for compulsion is very similar to that described in the white paper.
British Medical Journal (2002)However, there is certainly a cultural resistance to compulsion in this regard.
Irish Times (2002)Lady Davies admits to a primitive compulsion to grow the tender sub-tropical New Zealand plants of her childhood.
Glasgow Herald (2001)In such sad cases the compulsion often hides a deep unhappiness.
Cutler, Peter, Get Out of Debt and Prosper! a 10-step plan that really works (1991)
