In work or life, not everything goes smoothly, and we often face pressure to do things we are unwilling to do. So, how can we express “forcing someone to do something” in English?
Let’s learn together!
01. Force Someone: twist one’s armtwist one’s arm (1) twist means “to turn; to twist” (2) twist one’s arm has two meanings: one is “to twist someone’s arm behind their back,” commonly seen when police arrest a suspect; the other is “to force someone to do something, to apply pressure on someone” (3) twist one’s arm about doing sth. means “to force someone to do something” (4) you twisted my arm means “you forced me” Example: No one twisted your arm about breaking up with her. No one forced you to break up with her. Phil: Scout’s your dog. He should go with you. Frank: Okay, you twisted my arm. Modern Family02. Force Someone: make sb. do sth.(1) make means “to force” (2) make sb. do sth. means “to compel someone to do something” (3) be made to do sth. means “to be forced to do something” Example: don’t try to make Mitchell do something he doesn’t wanna do. Don’t make me come over there.03. Force Someone: force sb. to do sth.(1) force means “to compel” (2) force sb. to do sth. means “to force someone to do something.” In everyday English, make sb. do sth. is more commonly used than force sb. to do sth. (3) be forced to do sth. means “to be compelled to do something” (4) force oneself to do sth. means “to compel oneself to do something” Example: Why did you force me to wear a dress? She had to force herself to get up early.
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