obbligatorio

Obbligatorio is an Italian adjective meaning mandatory or required, indicating that something must be done or fulfilled due to law, regulation, rule, or normative expectation. The related noun form is obbligatorietà, which refers to the quality or state of being mandatory. The term comes from Latin obligatorium, from obligare “to bind.”

In Italian, obbligatorio agrees with the gender and number of the noun it modifies. The forms are: obbligatorio (masc. sing.), obbligatoria (fem. sing.), obbligatori (masc. plur.), and obbligatorie (fem. plur.). It is commonly placed before a noun to denote necessity, as in corso obbligatorio (mandatory course) or pagamento obbligatorio (mandatory payment). It can also follow the verb essere: È obbligatorio presentarsi. Another frequent use is in phrases like norme obbligatorie, regole obbligatorie, or strumenti obbligatori.

Usage notes: obbligatorio is contrasted with facoltativo, meaning optional, to distinguish required actions or items from those that are merely recommended. In legal, administrative, or organizational contexts, obbligatorietà describes the mandatory character of a rule or requirement, while l’obbligo refers to the obligation itself, and l’obbligazione to the legal relationship or duty arising from it.

Examples:

- È obbligatorio indossare elmetti in questa area.

- L’iscrizione è obbligatoria per tutti i partecipanti.

- Il pagamento dell’imposta è obbligatorio entro la scadenza.