tr.v., -pelled, -pel·ling, -pels.
- To urge to action through moral pressure; drive: I was impelled by events to take a stand.
- To drive forward; propel.
[Middle English impellen, from Latin impellere : in-, against; see in-2 + pellere, to drive.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
