Etymograph

English

compulsion

Compulsion comes from Latin compellere ‘to compel, coerce’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcompellere1‘to compel, coerce’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcompulsiō1
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600compulsion1
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1941compulsion1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English compulsion
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1941, Jubilee of the City Tube: “From the opening of the City & South London…”.

Earlier history not traced here. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcompellereWiktionary, English compulsion‘to compel, coerce’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcompulsiōWiktionary, English compulsion
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600compulsionWiktionary, English compulsion
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1941compulsionWiktionary, English compulsion. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1941, Jubilee of the City Tube: “From the opening of the City & South London…”

Linked words

through Latin compellere ‘to compel, coerce’

compel, 2 more

Today it means

noun An irrational need or irresistible urge to perform some action, often despite negative consequences.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “compulsion”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Latin compellere / compulsion

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