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obliged
[ uh-blahyjd ]
adjective
- bound by duty, ethics, or politeness:
You can bring something to share at the picnic, but please don't feel obliged.
- forced by law, regulation, or necessity:
All students are obliged to participate in an internship program.
- appreciative or grateful:
If you could shed some light on this mystery, I'd be obliged.
verb
- the simple past tense and past participle of oblige ( def ).
Other Words From
- o·blig·ed·ly [uh, -, blahy, -jid-lee], adverb
- o·blig·ed·ness noun
- un·o·bliged adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of obliged1
Idioms and Phrases
- (very) much obliged, thank you (very much):
Much obliged for your efforts!
Example Sentences
There were times when he seemed to feel obliged to tell Alfred Hitchcock stories.
There, so taken, caught in the act, flat-footed, we are obliged to make our stand.
After each session, she would sit with those who obliged and speak to them about their past, problems and desires.
She claimed he proceeded to ask for the same, to which she happily obliged.
No soldier is obliged to obey a law contrary to the law of God.
I suppose he is sick of the sound of them, or perhaps it is because he feels obliged to be conscientious in teaching Beethoven!
The unhappy applicant was naturally obliged to temporarily retire from the game, at all events for that night.
At the latter date all artists were obliged to vacate the Sorbonne ateliers to make room for some new department of instruction.
And when he answered it, he was obliged to acknowledge that she had made upon his nature a definite impression.
That is the reason I feel obliged to return—if Mac is no longer able—or willing—to get up at night.
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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.
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