obliges

Obliges is the third-person singular present tense form of the verb oblige. The core meanings are to bind someone to a duty or promise, to require or compel, and to do someone a favor by complying with a request. In formal contexts, oblige can describe legal or moral obligations, as in a contract that obliges parties to act in a certain way. In everyday use, it can also mean to accommodate or help someone by meeting their request, as in “She obliges by lending her notes.”

Etymology and related forms: Oblige comes from Old French obliger, from Latin obligare, meaning to bind. Related nouns include obligation (a duty or commitment) and obligor (the one who owes an obligation). Adjectives include obligatory (required by duty or law) and obliging (helpful and accommodating). The participial forms are obliged (past tense and past participle) and obliging (present participle).

Usage notes: The phrase it obliges me to … signals a sense of duty or indebtedness, often in formal English. The adjective “much obliged” is a courteous, somewhat old-fashioned way to thank someone. The sense of “to oblige” can be active (to compel someone) or passive in structure (to be obliged to do something).

Legal terminology: In legal language, obligee and obligor denote the party to whom an obligation is owed and the party who owes it, respectively. An obligation can be financial, contractual, or moral, and may be enforceable by law or governed by social norms.

In summary, obliges reflects the interplay between duty and service: it can denote compulsion, facilitation, or courteous compliance, depending on context.