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Dictate vs Obligation - What's the difference?

dictate | obligation |

As nouns the difference between dictate and obligation

is that dictate is an order or command while obligation is the act of binding oneself by a social, legal, or moral tie to someone.

As a verb dictate

is to order, command, control.

dictate

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • An order or command.
  • I must obey the dictates of my conscience.

    Verb

    (dictat)
  • To order, command, control.
  • * 2001 , Sydney I. Landau, Dictionaries: The Art and Craft of Lexicography , Cambridge University Press (ISBN 0-521-78512-X), page 409,
  • Trademark Owners will nevertheless try to dictate how their marks are to be represented, but dictionary publishers with spine can resist such pressure.
  • To speak in order for someone to write down the words.
  • She is dictating a letter to a stenographer.
    The French teacher dictated a passage from Victor Hugo.

    Derived terms

    * dictation * dictator

    obligation

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The act of binding oneself by a social, legal, or moral tie to someone.
  • A social, legal, or moral requirement, duty, contract, or promise that compels someone to follow or avoid a particular course of action.
  • A course of action imposed by society, law, or conscience by which someone is bound or restricted.
  • (legal) A legal agreement stipulating a specified payment or action; the document containing such agreement.
  • X shall be entitled to subcontract its obligation to provide the Support Services. <>
  • * 1668 December 19, , “Mr.'' Alexander Seaton ''contra'' Menzies” in ''The Deci?ions of the Lords of Council & Se??ion I (Edinburgh, 1683), page 575
  • The Pupil after his Pupillarity, had granted a Di?charge to one of the Co-tutors, which did extingui?h the whole Debt of that Co-tutor, and con?equently of all the re?t, they being all correi debendi , lyable by one individual Obligation , which cannot be Di?charged as to one, and ?tand as to all the re?t.

    Usage notes

    * Adjectives often used with "obligation": moral, legal, social, contractual, political, mutual, military, perpetual, etc.

    Synonyms

    * duty

    Antonyms

    * right