the imperative

noun

grammar

: the form that a verb or sentence has when it is expressing a command

"Eat your spinach!" is in the imperative.

Examples of the imperative in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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Every bit as compelling as that affirmative case for consummation of the deal is the imperative of avoiding the strategic and economic costs of rejection. —

Dan Ikenson, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024 Climate change elevates efficiency to an environmental virtue: the imperative to burn and emit as little as possible. —

Justin Davidson, Curbed, 12 Dec. 2024 Neither Putin nor Zelensky will be easily coaxed to the table, and Trump might resent the imperative of having to maintain, and even expand, support for Ukraine as a means to force negotiations. —

Michael McFaul, Foreign Affairs, 12 Dec. 2024 Ultimately, the Sora controversy is a microcosm of the broader challenges facing the AI industry: how to balance the pursuit of progress with the imperative to honor and protect the human labor that underpins it. —

Moin Roberts-Islam, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for the imperative

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Style

“The imperative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20imperative. Accessed 5 Jan. 2025.

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