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coerce

[koh-urs] / koʊˈɜrs /


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Therefore, it is more likely and perhaps beneficial if England apply some pressure, looking to coerce Norway into playing in a way they have prepared for.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

Vullo, in which the court held that the government cannot use informal tactics, like thinly-veiled threats of selective enforcement or demands for cooperation, to coerce private actors.

From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2026

District Court Judge Patrick Schiltz quashed the “unlawful” subpoenas, ruling that “overwhelming evidence” suggested they “were not issued to investigate, but to harass, coerce, and retaliate.”

From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2026

"If he were to adopt an unfriendly stance -- demanding concessions from China or attempting to coerce us into doing things we are unwilling to do, we would strike back with force," Wen told AFP.

From Barron's ● Apr. 23, 2026

If he put his mind to it, he could coerce away the whole letter on some pretext of giving it to the police, having the typing analyzed, who knew what he might come up with?

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

“We’re both familiar with what can happen and what has happened, when the state coerces people and restricts fundamental human rights, on a very personal level,” Howald said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2025

Regulators also say Amazon coerces sellers into signing up for FBA in order to reach customers on the Amazon store.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 9, 2023

Lawsuits also say the program unconstitutionally coerces drugmakers into selling their products at inadequate prices.

From Scientific American ● Aug. 30, 2023

Just do not be surprised when your sister-in-law ignores any handwritten invitations and coerces you into sending text reminders anyway.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 24, 2023

He avoids the ballroom entirely, save for a single waltz when Tsukiko coerces him onto the dance floor.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

People in prison confess to crimes, regardless of innocence, for any manner of reasons: because they are coerced, because their memories are unclear, to curry favor, for attention.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

His account is one of the many such stories of coerced expulsion — including those of other Los Angeles residents — featured in the bilingual exhibition.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

The patients I know who contributed to the hospital to “honor” their doctor were certainly not coerced.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

It found there was no single perpetrator of the practice in Britain, but "government decisions shaped the environment in which unmarried mothers were often shamed and coerced into having their children put up for adoption".

From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026

Then she coerced Papa into dragging the tree to her sisters and brother.

From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser

At times “strategic ambiguity” can be a useful tool for coercing foes to act in certain ways or even to step down from power.

From Slate ● Dec. 11, 2025

In the current situation, “the legal argument for broadly coercing a state into doing what you want isn’t really different,” Boushey said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2025

Three of his former colleagues are also on trial accused of coercing Hermoso into saying the kiss was consensual.

From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2025

He has never embraced the idea of a “rules-based international order,” a system that subjects great powers and small countries alike to prohibitions on invading or coercing their neighbors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2025

On the 3d December, 1779, in what is called "a very long speech," he returned to his theme, inveighing against ministers for "the favorite, though wild, Quixotic, and impracticable measure of coercing America."

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 20, No. 119, September, 1867 by Various




Vocabulary lists containing coerce


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