coercion

/kəʊˈɜːʃn/ (bre, ipa) · /kəʊˈɜːrʒn/ (ame, ipa) · /kō-ˈər-zhən -shən/ (ame, mw)

coercion — 名詞

1. the practice of controlling a person's actions through physical power, frighteni

1.名詞C1
釋義

脅迫;強迫

以武力、威脅或壓力強迫他人服從

the practice of controlling a person's actions through physical power, frightening threats, or heavy social or economic pressure—for example, making an employee sign a contract by threatening to fire them, or forcing citizens to obey a curfew by sending armed soldiers onto the streets.

例句

Workers agreed to a pay cut under coercion after their boss threatened to close the factory.

在老闆威脅關閉工廠後,工人們在脅迫下同意了減薪方案。

under + coercion

Elena told the court she confessed under police coercion, not by her own choice.

Elena 告訴法庭,她是在警方脅迫下認罪的,並非出於自願。

同義詞
  • duress

    a narrower legal term (C1) that specifically refers to threats of death or serious bodily harm; more technical and less common outside of law.

  • compulsion

    suggests an irresistible force that can be internal (psychological) or external; slightly more formal than coercion.

  • intimidation

    focuses on creating fear to make someone back down, rather than forcing a specific action; often implies verbal threats or menacing behaviour.

  • pressure

    the mildest term (B1); suggests strong persuasion without explicit threats or physical force.

反義詞
  • persuasion

    convincing someone through reasoning or argument, not force or threats.

  • voluntariness

    the state of acting freely by one's own choice, without any outside force.

文法句型

coercion + to-infinitive (coercion to sign)

under + coercion

by + coercion

用法筆記

Frequently used in legal and political contexts. The phrase 'under coercion' is the most common prepositional pattern.

常見錯誤

The manager used coercion to make the workers to accept lower pay.
The manager used coercion to make the workers accept lower pay.
💡after 'make' plus object, use the bare infinitive (no 'to').
He signed the document by coercion.
He signed the document under coercion.
💡the standard collocation is 'under coercion,' not 'by coercion.'