Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1400-1500
Language: Latin
Origin: impellere, from pellere 'to drive'

impel

 verb
     
im‧pel past tense and past participle impelled, present participle impelling [transitive] formal
if something impels you to do something, it makes you feel very strongly that you must do it [↪ compel]
impel somebody to do something
The lack of democracy and equality impelled the oppressed to fight for independence.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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