oblige

See also: obligé

English

Etymology

From Middle English obligen, from Old French obligier, obliger, from Latin obligō, obligāre, from ob- + ligō. Doublet of obligate, taken straight from Latin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /əˈblaɪd͡ʒ/
  • Rhymes: -aɪdʒ

  • Audio (UK):

    (file)

• (obsolete) IPA^(key): /əˈbliːd͡ʒ/, /ɒˈbliːd͡ʒ/

Verb

oblige (third-person singular simple present obliges, present participle obliging, simple past and past participle obliged)

1. (transitive) To constrain someone by force or by social, moral or legal means.

   Synonym: (formal) necessitate

   Your carelessness obliges firmness on my part.

   I am obliged to report to the police station every week.

   • 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:

     Tho' he was some time awake before me, yet did he not offer to disturb a repose he had given me so much occasion for; but on my first stirring, which was not till past ten o'clock, I was oblig'd to endure one more trial of his manhood.

2. (transitive, intransitive) To do (someone) a service or favour (hence, originally, creating an obligation).

   Synonym: accommodate

   He obliged me by not parking his car in the drive.

   The singer obliged(us) with an encore.

   • 1719, John Harris, Astronomical dialogues between a gentleman and a lady, page 151:

     In the mean time I have another trouble to give you, if you will oblige me in it; and that is to get me a sight of the famous Orrery, which I have heard you and others so often speak of; and which I think was made by Mr. Rowley, the famous Mathematical Instrument-Maker.

   • 2026 July 28, Nicholas Muhoro, “The Open Water True Story: How Tom and Eileen Lonergan Were Left Behind at Sea”, in Skip Boring‎^[3], archived from the original on 29 July 2026:

     They also asked to dive as a buddy pair rather than with an instructor. Considering their previous experience of more than 80 logged dives each, the crew obliged.

3. (transitive) To cause somebody to feel indebted.

   I am much obliged to you for your recent help.

Usage notes

Aside from in American English and Scottish, "obliged" had largely replaced "obligate" by the 20th century, the latter being more common in the 17th through 19th centuries.

Derived terms

• disoblige
• misoblige
• obligable
• obligement
• reoblige

Related terms

• liable
• much obliged
• noblesse oblige
• obligate
• obligation
• obligatory
• obligee
• obligor
• rely

Translations

to constrain someone by force or by social, moral or legal means

• Armenian: պարտադրել (hy) (partadrel), պարտավորեցնել (hy) (partavorecʻnel)
• Belarusian: абавя́зваць impf (abavjázvacʹ), абавяза́ць pf (abavjazácʹ)
• Bulgarian: задължавам (bg) (zadălžavam)
• Catalan: obligar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 强迫 (zh) (qiǎngpò)

• Danish: forpligte
• Dutch: verplichten (nl)
• Finnish: velvoittaa (fi), pakottaa (fi)
• French: imposer (fr), obliger (fr)
• Galician: obrigar (gl), forzar (gl), constrinxir (gl)
• German: verpflichten (de)
• Greek: υποχρεώνω (el) (ypochreóno)
• Hungarian: kötelez (hu)
• Italian: obbligare (it), forzare (it), costringere (it)
• Japanese: 義務付ける (ja) (ぎむづける, gimuzukeru)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: forplikte

  Nynorsk: forplikte

• Polish: zobowiązywać (pl) impf, zobowiązać (pl) pf
• Portuguese: obrigar (pt)
• Romanian: obliga (ro)
• Russian: обя́зывать (ru) impf (objázyvatʹ), обяза́ть (ru) pf (objazátʹ)
• Spanish: obligar (es)
• Swedish: förplikta (sv)
• Ukrainian: зобов'я́зувати impf (zobovʺjázuvaty), зобов'яза́ти pf (zobovʺjazáty)
• Walloon: oblidjî (wa)

to do someone a service or favour (hence, originally, creating an obligation)

• Bulgarian: правя услуга (pravja usluga), услужвам (bg) impf (uslužvam), услужа pf (usluža)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 幫忙 / 帮忙 (zh) (bāngmáng)

• Dutch: een plezier doen, plezieren (nl)
• Finnish: tehdä palvelus
• French: rendre service (fr) à, obliger (fr)
• Galician: facer o favor, facer favor
• German: einen Gefallen tun
• Italian: fare un favore, indebitarsi (it)
• Japanese: 世話をする (ja) (せわをする, sewa o suru), サービスする (ja) (sābisu suru)
• Russian: де́лать одолже́ние impf (délatʹ odolžénije), сде́лать одолже́ние pf (sdélatʹ odolžénije)
• Spanish: favorecer (es), complacer (es), serviciar (es)

to be indebted to someone

• Bulgarian: задължен съм (zadălžen săm)
• Finnish: olla velassa
• French: être redevable à
• Greek: είμαι ευγνώμων (eímai evgnómon)
• Hungarian: lekötelez (hu)
• Japanese: 恩義がある (ja) (おんぎがある, ongi ga aru), 世話になる (ja) (せわになる, sewa ni naru)
• Russian: быть обя́занным impf (bytʹ objázannym)

Anagrams

• big ole, biogel, globie

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔ.bliʒ/

• Audio (France (Toulouse)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Verb

oblige

1. inflection of obliger:
   1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
   2. second-person singular imperative

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [oˈblid͡ʒe]

Verb

oblige

1. third-person singular/plural present subjunctive of obliga