Adjacent Words

Forcible definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

FORCIBLE, a.
1. Powerful; strong; mighty; as a punishment forcible to bridle sin.
2. Violent; impetuous; driving forward with force; as a forcible stream.
3. Efficacious; active; powerful.
Sweet smells are most forcible in dry substances when broken.
4. Powerful; acting with force; impressive; as forcible words or arguments.
5. Containing force; acting by violence; as forcible means.
6. Done by force; suffered by force. The abdication of James, his advocates hold to have been forcible.
7. Valid; binding; obligatory. [Not used.]
8. In law, forcible entry is an actual violent entry into houses or lands.
Forcible detainer, is a violent withholding of the lands, etc. of another from his possession.
Forcible abduction, is the act of taking away wrongfully, as a child without the consent of the father, a ward without the consent of the guardian, or any person contrary to his or her will.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: impelled by physical force especially against resistance; "forcible entry"; "a real cop would get physical"; "strong-arm tactics" [syn: forcible, physical, strong-arm]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Date: 15th century 1. effected by force used against opposition or resistance 2. characterized by force, efficiency, or energy ; powerful • forcibleness noun • forcibly adverb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. done by or involving force; forceful. Derivatives: forcibleness n. forcibly adv. Etymology: ME f. AF & OF (as FORCE(1))

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Forcible For"ci*ble, a. [Cf. OF. forcible forcible, forceable that may be forced.] 1. Possessing force; characterized by force, efficiency, or energy; powerful; efficacious; impressive; influential. How forcible are right words! --Job. vi. 2?. Sweet smells are most forcible in dry substances, when broken. --Bacon. But I have reasons strong and forcible. --Shak. That punishment which hath been sometimes forcible to bridle sin. --Hooker. He is at once elegant and sublime, forcible and ornamented. --Lowth (Transl. ) 2. Violent; impetuous. Like mingled streams, more forcible when joined. --Prior. 3. Using force against opposition or resistance; obtained by compulsion; effected by force; as, forcible entry or abduction. In embraces of King James . . . forcible and unjust. --Swift. Forcible entry and detainer (Law), the entering upon and taking and withholding of land and tenements by actual force and violence, and with a strong hand, to the hindrance of the person having the right to enter. Syn: Violent; powerful; strong; energetic; mighty; potent; weighty; impressive; cogent; influential.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Forcible action involves physical force or violence. Reports are coming in of the forcible resettlement of villagers from the countryside into towns. ADJ: usu ADJ n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Powerful, strong, mighty, weighty, potent, impressive, irresistible, cogent, all-powerful. 2. Violent, impetuous. 3. Violent, compulsory, coerced, coercive. 4. Energetic, vigorous, effective, efficacious.

Moby Thesaurus

accented, accentuated, acid, active, acute, aggressive, animated, armipotent, assertive, authoritative, beefy, biting, bouncing, brisk, bulldozer, coercive, cogent, corrosive, cutting, decided, doughty, drastic, driving, dynamic, effective, emphasized, emphatic, energetic, enterprising, enthusiastic, forceful, forcy, full of pep, full-blooded, full-strength, go-go, gutsy, gutty, hale, hard, hard as nails, hardy, hearty, hefty, high-potency, high-powered, high-pressure, high-tension, husky, imperative, impetuous, impressive, in force, in power, in red letters, incisive, intense, iron-hard, irresistible, italicized, keen, kinetic, lively, living, lusty, mettlesome, mighty, mighty in battle, militant, mordant, nervous, nervy, obstinate, operative, penetrating, peppy, piercing, poignant, pointed, positive, potent, powerful, prepotent, puissant, punchy, punctuated, red-blooded, robust, robustious, rugged, ruling, self-assertive, sensational, severe, sinewed, sinewy, slashing, sledgehammer, smacking, snappy, spanking, spirited, stalwart, starred, steamroller, steely, stout, strapping, strenuous, stressed, striking, stringent, strong, strong as brandy, strong as strong, strong-arm, strong-willed, sturdy, take-charge, take-over, telling, trenchant, underlined, underscored, valid, vehement, vibrant, vigorous, violent, vital, vivacious, vivid, zestful, zesty, zippy