Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Characterized by or full of force; effective.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Possessing force; forcible; expressing or representing with, force.
  • Impelled by violence; driven with force; acting with power; violent; impetuous.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Full of or processing force; exerting force; mighty.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective With assertive force; powerful.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective characterized by or full of force or strength (often but not necessarily physical)
  • adjective forceful and definite in expression or action

Etymologies

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Examples

  • But Baris stood quietly, his expression forceful, his gaze unblinking when met by Klingon eyes.

    Star Trek: Myriad Universes: Shattered Light David R. George III 2010

  • For the Darwinian and Spencerian motifs are clearly not discussed either in forceful or clear terms, except as London wishes to impress his audience with the plasticity of the individual.

    Le Milieu, Le Moment, La Race: Literary Naturalism in Jack London's White Fang 2010

  • It pleaded in forceful terms for respect of the Geneva Convention rights of enemy soldiers, civilians and irregular combatants on the East Front, mustering a series of arguments that bear remarkable similarity to a memorandum sent by Colin Powell to President Bush sixty years later.

    Balkinization 2006

  • She had what is sometimes called a forceful personality -- unsmiling, economical in her movements, decisive in her actions.

    Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine 2004

  • She had what is sometimes called a forceful personality -- unsmiling, economical in her movements, decisive in her actions.

    Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine 2004

  • The native lay flat on the bed, breathing in short, forceful gasps.

    Secret Mission Moluk Voltz, William 1975

  • But the Americans wanted something forceful, so they used the Greek word ` bourthes. '

    VERBATIM: The Language Quarterly Vol 1 No 3 1974

  • Not only were the dissents "forceful" -- aren't they all?

    Archive 2007-05-01 Ann Althouse 2007

  • Progressives worry Obama may not get another high court pick, and urge him to name a forceful advocate for the left.

    Analysis: White House will find Justice Stevens tough to replace 2010

  • He flirted with the idea of forceful solutions, as best we know never quite ordering one but directing the security services to prepare options, dropping hints, thinking out loud.

    The Return Daniel Treisman 2011

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