urged; urging
1
: to present, advocate, or demand earnestly or pressingly
his conviction was upheld on a theory never urged at his … trial—
Leon Friedman
Leon Friedman2
: to undertake the accomplishment of with energy, swiftness, or enthusiasm
urge the attack
3
4
: to force or impel in an indicated direction or into motion or greater speed
the dog urged the sheep toward the gate
: to declare, advance, or press earnestly a statement, argument, charge, or claim
urged for the adoption of the proposal
urger
noun
1
: the act or process of urging
2
: a force or impulse that urges
especially
: a continuing impulse toward an activity or goal
Examples of urge in a Sentence
Verb
He is continually urging reform.
The rescuers urged that we remain calm.
an editorial urging readers to vote
I urge you to reconsider.
A hand on her back urged her forward.
Noun
the urge for something sweet
He fought the urge to cry.
Recent Examples on the Web
Claudia Grisales, NPR, 11 Mar. 2025
But rights groups welcomed Duterte’s detention and urged the Philippines to hand the former president over to the ICC.
—Kathleen Magramo, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025
Mark Travers, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
But even if your last wet T-shirt contest is safely in the rearview mirror, there’s still the urge to shake off winter and welcome the sunshine.
—Jessica Iredale, airmail.news, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for urge
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show current usage.
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Verb
On Tuesday morning Vice President J.D. Vance huddled in a closed door conference meeting with House Republicans and urged them to back the measure.
—Claudia Grisales, NPR, 11 Mar. 2025
But rights groups welcomed Duterte’s detention and urged the Philippines to hand the former president over to the ICC.
—Kathleen Magramo, CNN, 11 Mar. 2025
Noun
Often, the urge to control how things unfold leads to frustration, impulsive decisions and unnecessary stress.
—Mark Travers, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
But even if your last wet T-shirt contest is safely in the rearview mirror, there’s still the urge to shake off winter and welcome the sunshine.
—Jessica Iredale, airmail.news, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for urge
Cite this Entry
“Urge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/urge. Accessed 17 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
urge
1 of 2 verb
urged; urging
1
: to ask for or support earnestly
continually urging reform
2
: to try to persuade
urge a guest to stay longer
3
: to force or drive to some course or activity (as greater speed)
riders urging their horses on
urge
2 of 2 noun1
: the act or process of urging
2
: a strong desire especially to achieve a goal
the urge to win
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