impel
Americanverb
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to urge or force (a person) to an action; constrain or motivate
-
to push, drive, or force into motion
Synonym Usage
See compel.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
impelsimple
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impelssimple
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have impelledperfect
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has impelledperfect
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am impellingprogressive
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are impellingprogressive
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is impellingprogressive
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have been impellingperfect progressive
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has been impellingperfect progressive
Past
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impelledsimple
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had impelledperfect
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was impellingprogressive
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were impellingprogressive
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had been impellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of impel
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English impellen, from Latin impellere “to strike against, set in motion,” from im- im- 1 + pellere “to strike, move”; cf. pulse 1
Explanation
Impel means to force to move forward. A person sleep walking might move as if impelled by a force beyond their control. Loneliness might impel you to talk to someone you don't know. Impel derives from the Latin in- "toward" + pellere "to drive," which also brings us compel "to force" and propel "to drive forward." The boy was propelled by his fears, but when he said fear of bullies impelled him to stay home on Halloween, his mother compelled him to dress and go outside.
Vocabulary lists containing impel
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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"The Bells" by Edgar Allan Poe
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Mahatma Gandhi's "Quit India" Speech
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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:
John Bulkeley, the Wager’s gunner, a weapons expert and “instinctive leader” whose Bible-inspired narrative gifts would impel him to write an indelible account of events.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2023
My criticisms are not an attempt to exacerbate that crisis, but to impel the Justices to avoid it.
From Slate ● Oct. 4, 2021
I therefore Proclaim that a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that I should declare the causes which impel me to these opinions.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 12, 2021
The letter, which confirms the breadth of opposition to the postponement of “Philip Guston Now,” should be enough to impel the four museums to reinstate the show.
From New York Times ● Sep. 30, 2020
He saw enough in her face to impel him to take her hand and hold it while he said his lingering good night “Will you go to the races again?” he asked.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
Wilzek, the novel’s unlikely hero, does look closely, and what he sees impels him to take a moral stand.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2025
First, beauty impels us to pay a certain kind of attention.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 6, 2023
What is it that impels Scarry to go there?
From Washington Post ● Sep. 2, 2022
The inspiration gained from that view might carry us well beyond the statistical forecast that impels the fatalistic alternative.
From Scientific American ● May 12, 2021
When the Desire impels the Will towards a prohibited object, the action of the Will, in concurrence with the desire, constitutes a wish morally wrong.
From Doctrine of the Will by Mahan, Asa
A sense of duty, rooted for many in a profound Christian faith, impelled each to take extraordinary risks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 19, 2025
What impelled him, and what does it mean?
From Slate ● Sep. 26, 2025
At Lawson’s urging, they refused bail, which impelled hundreds of other students to join the crusade against segregated interstate travel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2024
The engineer said he felt impelled to speak out and provide the internal documents because “the safety of the public outweighs the inconvenience to the airlines to make money.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 19, 2023
There was no noon meal on account of that night’s big Saturday supper, the smell of which impelled the students to the barbecue pits.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
One of the pleasures of writing for me is to discover what is it that is impelling me to engage with these characters.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 27, 2022
“Get at Me Dog” is an impelling and incendiary piece of music, like four minutes of a bomb going off.
From Slate ● Apr. 11, 2021
In a flash, rain poured and wind whipped at once, blowing trash onto the field and impelling a rapid response from the grounds crew.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2019
What is impelling the transformation is that the headquarters, constructed under the 1968 building code, do not meet current life-safety and other requirements.
From New York Times ● Dec. 16, 2015
He was excited and something was impelling him to become more excited.
From "Native Son" by Richard Wright
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
