The act of compelling, driving, or urging someone forward; the state of being compelled or under pressure.
From Latin compellatio, derived from compellare (to address, speak to) and compellere (to drive together). The suffix -tion indicates the action or result of compelling. Medieval Latin used this term to describe being summoned or called upon.
Compellation has an almost ghostly presence in English—it appears in legal and philosophical texts but virtually vanished from everyday speech by the 1800s. It's a perfect example of how useful words can simply go extinct when shorter or more convenient alternatives (like 'compulsion') emerge and outcompete them.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.