Definition

Adjective 1. Using force or threats to make someone do something against their will: Describes actions, measures, or power that compel obedience or compliance through intimidation, pressure, or the application of force. 2. Having the power or intent to coerce: Characterizes something as serving the function of compelling a particular behavior or outcome.

Examples of Usage

• The government was accused of using coercive tactics to silence dissent.
• A contract signed under coercive pressure is not legally valid.
• The therapist emphasized the importance of non-coercive communication in building trust.
• The regime maintained control through a combination of propaganda and coercive state apparatus.

Advanced Usage

• "Coercive control": A pattern of behavior in domestic or interpersonal abuse used to dominate, isolate, and control a person through intimidation, humiliation, and threats.
  • The new law recognizes patterns of coercive control as a form of domestic violence.
• "Coercive power": Authority or influence derived from the ability to punish or impose negative consequences.
  • A leader who relies solely on coercive power often faces high levels of resentment.

Variants and Related Words

• Coerce (verb): To persuade someone to do something by using force or threats.
  • He was coerced into confessing.
• Coercion (noun): The practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats.
  • They signed the agreement under coercion.

Synonyms

• Forcible: Done by or involving force.
• Compulsory: Required by law or a rule; obligatory.
• Authoritarian: Favoring or enforcing strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom.

Related Phrases

• "Coercive measures": Actions taken to force compliance.
  • The union threatened a strike if coercive measures were used against its members.
• "Coercive force": (In physics) The magnetic field intensity needed to reduce the magnetization of a ferromagnetic material to zero after it has reached saturation. (Note: This is a specialized, compound technical term).
  • The magnet's strength is partly determined by its coercive force.

Adjective

1. serving or intended to coerce
   • authority is directional instead of coercive