force
[ fawrs, fohrs ]
/ fɔrs, foʊrs /
noun
verb (used with object), forced, forc·ing.
verb (used without object), forced, forc·ing.
to make one's way by force.
Idioms for force
- in operation; effective: This ancient rule is no longer in force.
- in large numbers; at full strength: They attacked in force.
in force,
Origin of force
1250–1300; (noun) Middle English < Middle French < Vulgar Latin
*fortia, derivative of Latin
fortis strong; (v.) Middle English
forcen < Anglo-French, Old French
forcer, derivative of the noun
synonym study for force
3. See
strength.
historical usage of force
Force has a straightforward, uncomplicated history: the word comes via Old French
force from
fortia, an unattested Vulgar Latin feminine singular noun from Latin
fortia, a neuter plural adjective used as a noun, and derived from the adjective
fortis “strong, robust, brave.” Nouns and adjectives that were originally neuter in Latin usually become masculine in Romance (languages descended from Latin):
corpus “body,” neuter in Latin, becomes
corps in French,
corpo in Italian, and
cuerpo in Spanish, all masculine nouns. The notable exception is that many Latin neuter plural adjectives and participles ending in
-ia become feminine singular nouns in Romance because these neuter plurals end in
-a, which looks like the singular of Latin feminine nouns of the first declension, especially if the new noun has an abstract or collective meaning. So
appārentia, the neuter plural of Latin
appārēns “apparent,” will become
apparence in French,
apparenza in Italian,
apariencia in Spanish,
aparança in Catalan, and
aparenţă in Romanian; and
fortia will become
force in French,
forza in Italian,
fuerza in Spanish,
força in Catalan, and
forţă in Romanian.
OTHER WORDS FROM force
Words nearby force
Example sentences from the Web for force
British Dictionary definitions for force (1 of 2)
force
1
/ (fɔːs) /
noun
verb (tr)
Derived forms of force
forceable, adjective forceless, adjective forcer, noun forcingly, adverbWord Origin for force
C13: from Old French, from Vulgar Latin
fortia (unattested), from Latin
fortis strong
British Dictionary definitions for force (2 of 2)
force
2
/ (fɔːs) /
noun
(in northern England) a waterfall
Word Origin for force
C17: from Old Norse
fors
Medical definitions for force
force
[ fôrs ]
n.
The capacity to do work or cause physical change; energy, strength, or active power.
A vector quantity that tends to produce an acceleration of a body in the direction of its application.
Scientific definitions for force
force
[ fôrs ]
Any of various factors that cause a body to change its speed, direction, or shape. Force is a vector quantity, having both magnitude and direction. Contributions of force from different sources can be summed to give the net force at any given point.
Any of the four natural phenomena involving the interaction between particles of matter. From the strongest to the weakest, the four forces are the strong nuclear force, the electromagnetic force, the weak nuclear force, and gravity.
Cultural definitions for force
force
In physics, something that causes a change in the motion of an object. The modern definition of force (an object's mass multiplied by its acceleration) was given by Isaac Newton in Newton's laws of motion. The most familiar unit of force is the pound. (See mechanics.)
notes for force
Gravity, and therefore
weight, is a kind of force.
Idioms and Phrases with force
force