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impose Definition

im·pose (im pōz′)

transitive verb -·posed′, -·pos′·ing

  1. to place or set (a burden, tax, fine, etc. on or upon) as by authority
  2. to force (oneself, one's presence or will, etc.) on another or others without right or invitation; obtrude
  3. to pass off; palm off; foist, esp. by deception to impose false cures on unsuspecting patients
  4. to arrange (pages of type or plates) in a frame in the proper order of printing
  5. Archaic to place; put; deposit
  6. to lay (the hands) on, as in ordaining

Etymology: Fr, altered by assoc. with poser (see pose) < L imponere, to place upon < in-, on + ponere: see position

impose Related Forms

im·pos′er noun

impose Idioms

impose on

or impose upon
  1. Rare to make a strong impression on
  2. to take advantage of; put to some trouble or use unfairly for one's own benefit
  3. to cheat or defraud

impose Synonyms

impose

v.

force upon, inflict, foist, exact; see command 2, force 1, require 2, tax 1.

impose Usage Examples

Object

  • sanction: Iraq had a right to impose sanctions too, you know.
  • restriction: MPI imposes no restrictions on the code executed by the callback functions.
  • penalty: The rebel base also imposes a points penalty equal to double the campaign points value, which was 18 % in Kev's case.
  • constraint: Any special constraints imposed by software packages which you want to run.
  • obligation: The regulations do not impose an obligation to remove asbestos in all cases of discovery.
  • burden: Fifty per cent of the retail industry's turnover is spent on the cumulative burden imposed by the Government.

Preposition: on

  • offender: Unlimited fines and up to two years ' imprisonment may be imposed on offenders.
  • airline: This is on top of onerous operating restrictions imposed on airlines over-flying southern Germany and a strict curfew.

Subject

  • statute: Excessive Accumulations The rule against excessive accumulations is a further restriction, imposed by statute.
  • magistrate: There were concerns about the low level of fines imposed by magistrates ' courts.
  • court: Examples of bail conditions imposed by courts A court can impose any condition that seems appropriate in the circumstances of the particular case.

Modifying Another Word

  • externally: These establish the indigenous discourse of insanity, which saw madness in terms of an externally imposed affliction.
  • arbitrarily: The fundamental point Marwick seems to be making here is that the structure in the history book is not imposed arbitrarily.

Followed by an intransitive particle

upon: Mr Brown suggested that effective guidelines need to be owned by and not imposed upon, the ambulance service.

Preposition: under

paragraph: But this general condition shall have effect subject to any conditions imposed under paragraph ( 1 ).

Preposition: from

outside: The solution to the problem of malaria cannot be imposed from outside.

Preposition: for

breach: The maximum penalty a Magistratesâ Court may impose for a breach of the HSW Act is £ 20,000.

Preposition: by

  • statute: Excessive Accumulations The rule against excessive accumulations is a further restriction, imposed by statute.
  • magistrate: There were concerns about the low level of fines imposed by magistrates ' courts.
  • court: Examples of bail conditions imposed by courts A court can impose any condition that seems appropriate in the circumstances of the particular case.