ə̇mˈpel transitive verb
( impelled ; impelled ; impelling ; impels )
Etymology: Latin impellere, from in- in- (II) + pellere to drive — more at felt
1.
a. : to urge or drive by force or constraint
impelled out of England … by religious dissension — Evelyn Wrench
: exert strong moral pressure on or affect with marked moral compulsion in a particular direction
impelled to resist oppressive laws
felt impelled to tolerate what he intensely disliked
continued to write, impelled by profit instead of vision and recollection — Saturday Review
b. : to create or generate by force or constraint
land hunger impelled the deceit, trickery, bribery which whites practiced upon the red man — H.M.Hyman
his symphonies and symphonic poems are impelled by picturesque Celtic folklore — Norman Demuth
2. : to impart motion to : give a physical impulse to : propel
impelling a wheelbarrow along the street — Nathaniel Hawthorne
Synonyms: see move