Definitions for oblige
əˈblaɪdʒoblige

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:1.0 / 2 votes

1. compel, oblige, obligateverb

   force somebody to do something

   "We compel all students to fill out this form"

2. oblige, bind, hold, obligateverb

   bind by an obligation; cause to be indebted

   "He's held by a contract"; "I'll hold you by your promise"

3. oblige, accommodateverb

   provide a service or favor for someone

   "We had to oblige him"

WiktionaryRate this definition:2.0 / 1 vote

1. obligeverb

   To constrain someone by force or by social, moral or legal means.

   I am obliged to report to the police station every week.

2. obligeverb

   To do someone a service or favour (hence, originally, creating an obligation).

   I am obliged to report to the police station every week.

3. obligeverb

   To be indebted to someone.

   I am obliged to you for your recent help.

4. obligeverb

   To do a service or favour.

   The singer obliged with another song.

5. Etymology: From Old (and modern) French obliger, from Latin obligare, from ob- + ligare ‘bind’.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. To OBLIGEverb

   Etymology: obliger, Fr. obligo, Latin.

   1. To bind; to impose obligation; to compel to something.

   Religion obliges men to the practice of those virtues which conduce to the preservation of our health. John Tillotson.

   The law must oblige in all precepts, or in none. If it oblige in all, all are to be obeyed; if it oblige in none, it has no longer the authority of a law. John Rogers, Serm. 15.

   2. To indebt; to lay obligations of gratitude.

   He that depends upon another, must
   Oblige his honour with a boundless trust. Edmund Waller.

   Since love obliges not, I from this hour
   Assume the right of man’s despotic power. Dryden.

   Vain wretched creature, how art thou misled,
   To think thy wit these godlike notions bred!
   These truths are not the product of thy mind,
   But dropt from heav’n, and of a nobler kind:
   Reveal’d religion first inform’d thy sight,
   And reason saw not, till faith sprung the light.
   Thus man by his own strength to heaven wou’d soar,
   And wou’d not be oblig’d to God for more. Dryden.

   When int’rest calls off all her sneaking train,
   When all th’ oblig’d desert, and all the vain,
   She waits or to the scaffold or the cell. Alexander Pope.

   To those hills we are obliged for all our metals, and with them for all the conveniences and comforts of life. Richard Bentley.

   3. To please; to gratify.

   A great man gets more by obliging his inferiour, than by disdaining him; as a man has a greater advantage by sowing and dressing his ground, than he can have by trampling upon it. Robert South, Sermons.

   Some natures are so sour and so ungrateful, that they are never to be obliged. Roger L'Estrange.

   Happy the people, who preserve their honour
   By the same duties that oblige their prince! Joseph Addison, Cato.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. oblige

   To oblige is to compel or require someone to do something as a legal or moral duty, or to do someone a favor or service. It can also mean to make (something) necessary or obligatory.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Obligeverb

   to attach, as by a bond

2. Obligeverb

   to constrain by physical, moral, or legal force; to put under obligation to do or forbear something

3. Obligeverb

   to bind by some favor rendered; to place under a debt; hence, to do a favor to; to please; to gratify; to accommodate

4. Etymology: [OF. obligier, F. obliger, L. obligare; ob (see Ob-) + ligare to bind. See Ligament, and cf. Obligate.]

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Oblige

   ō-blīj′, v.t. to bind or constrain: to bind by some favour rendered, hence to do a favour to.—adj. Ob′ligable, that can be held to a promise or an undertaking: true to a promise or a contract.—n. Ob′ligant, one who binds himself to another to pay or to perform something.—v.t. Ob′ligāte, to constrain: to bind by contract or duty:—pr.p. ob′ligāting; pa.p. ob′ligāted.—n. Obligā′tion, act of obliging: the power which binds to a promise, a duty, &c.: any act which binds one to do something for another: that to which one is bound: state of being indebted for a favour: (law) a bond containing a penalty in case of failure.—adv. Ob′ligatorily.—n. Ob′ligatoriness.—adj. Ob′ligātory, binding: imposing duty.—ns. Obligee (ob-li-jē′), the person to whom another is obliged; Oblige′ment, a favour conferred.—adj. Oblig′ing, disposed to confer favours: ready to do a good turn.—adv. Oblig′ingly.—ns. Oblig′ingness; Ob′ligor (law), the person who binds himself to another. [Fr.,—L. obligāre, -ātum—ob, before, ligāre, to bind.]

Editors ContributionRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. obligeverb

   Parents are obliged to care for their offspring.

   
   

   Submitted by db.harmer.dh.dh on July 4, 2022  

2. ---

   oblige

   To provide support where ethical, moral and just.

   They often oblige to ensure unity is the way moving forward.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on March 12, 2020  

Matched Categories

1. • Cause
   • Comply

Anagrams for oblige »

1. big ole

How to pronounce oblige?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say oblige in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of oblige in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of oblige in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of oblige in a Sentence

1. Charles de Montesquieu:

   It is unreasonable... to oblige a man not to attempt the defense of his own life.

2. Vittoria Colliza:

   This [ mandates ] was really a change of paradigm, if you think about vaccine hesitancy and how authorities tried to handle it, at the beginning it was really a lot of pressure on explanations, on communication, and the aim was really not to oblige people but to convince them. And at a certain point, given the very large circulation of the Delta variant in several EU countries, authorities move towards something that is a bit more constraining.

3. Paul Davies:

   Recent discoveries about the primeval cosmos oblige us to accept that the expanding universe has been set up in its motion with a cooperation of astonishing precision.

4. Marco Rubio:

   It’s not just some rule you pass that everybody has to oblige by. It’s the willingness to shoot down the aircraft of the Russian Federation, which is basically the beginning of World War III.

5. Barry Williams:

   No! sometimes I get tired of talking about myself though. ‘The Brady Bunch’ has been an integral part of my life. It’s a show that has been with me now for over 50 years, and I consider the cast members a second family. I know that there is interest and curiosity around the show, and I’m happy to oblige.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=oblige
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Oblige
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=oblige
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oblige
6. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=oblige