verb
oblige
To make someone do something through duty or necessity.
The contract obliges the tenant to maintain the garden.
Etymology
Latin obligare means to bind. Duty or necessity is pictured as a bond that requires someone to act.
More examples
- The delay obliged us to stay overnight.
- The rule is obliging everyone to register.
- He had been obliged to apologize.
Forms
oblige · obliges · obliged · obliging
obligation noun — a duty or requirement