coercive
adjective
co·er·cive
kō-ˈər-siv 
: serving or intended to coerce
coercive power
coercive measures
coercively
adverb
coerciveness
noun
Examples of coercive in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Realistically, even major investments will enable Taiwan only to make an invasion slow, long, and costly, not to render coercive unification impossible.
—
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Ehrlich can hardly be blamed for the most coercive incarnations of population control.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025
Eugenics led to the institutionalization and forced sterilization of, and the coercive experimentation on, people with disabilities, immigrants and people of color across the U.S.
—Lauren Shallish, The Conversation, 24 Feb. 2025
Hybrid coercive strategies—such as disinformation campaigns and gray-zone tactics—often blur the lines between cooperation and confrontation.
—Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for coercive
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Ehrlich can hardly be blamed for the most coercive incarnations of population control.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025
Eugenics led to the institutionalization and forced sterilization of, and the coercive experimentation on, people with disabilities, immigrants and people of color across the U.S.
—Lauren Shallish, The Conversation, 24 Feb. 2025
Hybrid coercive strategies—such as disinformation campaigns and gray-zone tactics—often blur the lines between cooperation and confrontation.
—Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for coercive
Cite this Entry
“Coercive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coercive. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
coercive
adjective
co·er·cive
kō-ˈər-siv
1
: serving or intended to coerce
2
: resulting from coercion
to protect women from coercive intimacy—Kimberle Crenshaw
Kimberle CrenshawLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share