imperative

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The U.S. once recognized a Cold War imperative to make sure no outside power threatened the Persian Gulf.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

For litigators, it has created a new imperative: ferreting out citations that have been fabricated by AI bots in their own court filings — and their adversaries’.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026

"I've always felt like it's a moral imperative, it's a duty to explain how we're spending the money and what we're doing with the people," he said.

From Barron's • Mar. 13, 2026

Innes said pages like these were "driven by a profit imperative," and would "do anything where they think they can get eyeballs on their content if it will make them money".

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

Then, without warning, the third sentence shifts to the imperative mood and we are supposed to have the reader, not the nouns, forming plurals in a certain way.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker