imperative Hear it!

imperative Definition

im·pera·tive (im per′ə tiv)

adjective

  1. having the nature of, or indicating, power or authority; commanding an imperative gesture
  2. absolutely necessary; urgent; compelling it is imperative that I go
  3. Gram. designating or of the mood of a verb that expresses a command, strong request, or exhortation

Etymology: LL imperativus, commanding < pp. of L imperare, to command: see emperor

noun

  1. a binding or compelling rule, duty, requirement, etc.
  2. a command; order
  3. Gram.
    1. the imperative mood
    2. a verb in this mood

imperative Related Forms
im·per′a·tively adverb im·per′a·tive·ness noun
imperative Synonyms

imperative

modif.

  1. Necessary

    inescapable, immediate, crucial, compelling; see crucial, important 1, necessary 1, urgent 1.

  2. Authoritative

    masterful, commanding, dominant; see autocratic 1, dominant 2, powerful 1.

imperative Usage Examples

Preposition: that

  • co-operation: It must have seemed imperative that the co-operation and goodwill of the profession be regained, as without it the Scheme must founder.

Converse of object

  • emphasize: It emphasizes the military imperative of stabilizing Baghdad and lower expectations about a democratic polity along Western lines.

Adjective modifier

  • categorical: Nothing has any point - except of course the categorical imperative.
  • moral: Leaders have a moral imperative to develop the next generation of school leaders.
  • hypothetical: Reasons for action which are contingent in this way on desires and inclinations are furnished by what Kant called hypothetical imperatives.
  • ethical: Moreover, there is an ethical imperative not to destroy the wonderful diversity of life on Earth.
  • pedagogical: The " pedagogical imperative " includes the obligation to inquire into the consequences of one's work with students.
  • technological: Examples of the management of change under the technological imperatives we were subjected to were few, apart maybe from the Carnegie Mellon initiatives.

Modifies a noun

  • verb: This is a compound sentence consisting of three independent clauses, all with imperative verbs.
  • necessity: A further, far more detailed and specified development of these principles is an imperative necessity.
  • mood: The Organizational function often belongs grammatically to the imperative mood.
  • paradigm: The module will include an in-depth study of a declarative language through a significant programming application, contrasting it with the imperative paradigm.
  • programming: In the context of imperative programming, the emphasis shifts from describing control flow to describing interacting objects.
  • language: An abstract machine for the execution of the imperative language.

Used with adjective complement

  • seem: Securing a place to work, however small or improvised, seemed imperative to me during my final year at college.
  • become: Thus it became imperative to relate the seaman's guess logged in Beaufort numbers to the wind speed in knots.

Noun used with modifier

  • gospel: This spiritual dimension addresses the gospel imperative for equity and compassion among all peoples.

Modifying Another Word

  • absolutely: The very nature of the relations makes it absolutely imperative that every victim of unlawful appetite, in whatever direction, shall totally abstain.
  • therefore: It is therefore imperative to include all names of jointly liable people from the start.