1. (

• compulsion ,
• irresistible_impulse

) an urge to do or say something that might be better left undone or unsaid; "he felt a compulsion to babble on about the accident" ;

2. (

• compulsion ,
• obsession

) an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will; "her compulsion to wash her hands repeatedly" ;

3. (

• compulsion ,
• coercion

) using force to cause something to occur; "though pressed into rugby under compulsion I began to enjoy the game"; "they didn't have to use coercion" ;