1
as in submission
a bending to the authority or control of another
the drill sergeant demanded complete and unquestioning obedience from the recruits
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2
as in submissiveness
a readiness or willingness to yield to the wishes of others
the cowardly obedience with which the dictator's henchmen followed his every command
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3
as in adherence
the following of a custom, rule, or law
expectations of strict obedience to the guidelines were soon dashed
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of obedience
One additional point is that anticipatory obedience is not necessarily a bad thing.
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Lance Eliot, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
And there’s nuances to all this, but without boring you to death, this is basically one big whatcha-gonna-do-bout-it by a president who demands nothing less than complete obedience.
—Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 19 Nov. 2024
In March 1856, Little Thunder was forced to shake hands with Harney, who had summoned leaders of the seven Lakota bands to Fort Pierre, in South Dakota, to dictate his terms for peace—essentially, obedience and docility.
—Tim Madigan, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024
Their doodle graduated first in its class from obedience school; next stop, Westminster.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for obedience 
Lance Eliot, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
And there’s nuances to all this, but without boring you to death, this is basically one big whatcha-gonna-do-bout-it by a president who demands nothing less than complete obedience.
—Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 19 Nov. 2024
In March 1856, Little Thunder was forced to shake hands with Harney, who had summoned leaders of the seven Lakota bands to Fort Pierre, in South Dakota, to dictate his terms for peace—essentially, obedience and docility.
—Tim Madigan, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024
Their doodle graduated first in its class from obedience school; next stop, Westminster.
—Angela Haupt, TIME, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for obedience
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obedience
Noun
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The loss was the first submission defeat of Adesanya’s career.Trent Reinsmith, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
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The acclaimed Cannes Film Festival darling, Latvia’s submission for this year’s International Feature Film Oscar race, just made the category’s shortlist after sweeping major awards including Best Feature at Annecy and Los Angeles, New York and National Board of Review critics.Robert Lang, Deadline, 29 Dec. 2024
Noun
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These complexities highlight the need for thoughtful curation, rigorous validation, and adherence to ethical principles in transforming raw data into a reliable foundation for AI systems—a process.Hamilton Mann, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024
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Schools were instead affected by their administrative adherence to First Amendment principles.Angele Latham, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024
Noun
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In about two dozen cases where more substantial improvements were necessary, the office reached voluntary compliance agreements.Ed Shanahan, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2025
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If the consent decree is approved by federal court, an independent monitor will oversee Louisville’s compliance.Josh Wood, The Courier-Journal, 31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The intrusion and lack of privacy are not being met with acquiescence; employees are outraged and calling for boundaries around what ‘Big Brother’ can use against them.Melissa A. Wheeler, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2024
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Demanding acquiescence, the Kremlin understands that the war effort can also be ignored or put out of mind.Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 13 Mar. 2024
Noun
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Insisting on a different history—or a challenging monument—did not come easily to a Jewish population that was, for centuries, intent on conformity.Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 2 Jan. 2025
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As an instrument of power and control in a single-party system, the North Korean military places supreme emphasis on doctrine, hierarchy, and conformity.Frank Lavin, Forbes, 31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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The final easily visible such occultation of until 2036, The Virtual Telescope Project will host an online observation from 17:15-18:30 UTC (12:15-1:30 p.m. EST).Jamie Carter, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024
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Here are three observations from Saturday’s 81-66 victory over UMES.Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 29 Dec. 2024
Noun
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However, owner surrender rates increased from 30.5 percent in 2019 to 32 percent in 2024, which is primarily due to cats.Gord Magill, Newsweek, 19 Dec. 2024
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It could well be forced into a surrender involving Putin annexing huge swaths of its territory, as well as promising never to join NATO.Chantal Da Silva, NBC News, 6 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Locals live in deference to the nature that surrounds them, collecting water from the forest’s crystal-clear spring with quiet care.Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Dec. 2024
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And even in the face of the deference the Court must give Congress, the CTA appears likely unconstitutional.Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near obedience
Cite this Entry
“Obedience.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obedience. Accessed 9 Jan. 2025.
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