Obedience
uh-BEE-dee-uhnss
/əˈbiː.di.əns/
Compliance with an order, request, or law or submission to another's authority.
Specifically denotes carrying out explicit directives issued by an authority figure or hierarchical superior.
The story behind the word. Derived from Latin 'oboedire', literally 'to give ear to' or 'listen attentively'. Over centuries, listening attentively transformed into dutifully submitting to orders.
Word relationships
- subservience: Subservience implies excessive willingness to serve, while obedience focuses on following orders.
- disobedience: Refusal or failure to obey authority or regulations.
Commonly confused with
- Compliance: Obedience requires a direct order from an authority figure, whereas compliance involves yielding to a peer's request.
Word family
- obey (verb): To carry out a command or directive.
- obedient (adjective): Dutifully complying with instructions.
Collocations
- blind obedience
- demand obedience
- strict obedience
Idioms & expressions
- carry out orders
- fall in line
Example sentences
- "Stanley Milgram's classic experiments revealed that ordinary people exhibited astonishing obedience to an authority figure ordering electric shocks." Social Psychology
- "Military training instills unquestioning obedience to ensure swift operational execution under fire." Organizational Management
Memory hook
O-BEDI-ence: Listen (audire) attentively to the boss and jump right into line. Hear and obey.
When not to use
Do not use when someone adopts peer behaviors without an explicit command; that is conformity.
Fun facts
- In Stanley Milgram's initial experiment, 65% of participants obeyed orders to deliver the maximum 450-volt shock.
Related words
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