From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishobligateob‧li‧gat‧e /ˈɒblɪɡeɪt $ ˈɑːb-/ verb [transitive] especially American English 1 MUSTto make someone have to do something, because it is the law, their duty, or the right thing to do SYN obligebe obligated to do something Tenants are obligated to pay their rent on time.2 → be/feel obligatedGrammar Obligate is usually passive. → oblige→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
obligate• Does his confession obligate his wife to be reconciled to him?• There is nothing that obligates the university to give her any raises in the future.• Doing something you feel obligated to do is not bad.• Do not feel obligated to drive faster than is comfortable for you just because others do.• Now, the Supreme Court is not obligated to send a consistent cultural message.From Longman Business Dictionaryobligateob‧li‧gate /ˈɒbləgeɪtˈɑːb-/ verb [transitive] especially American English1to make it necessary for someone to do somethingA new law will obligate all companies engaging in banking business to get approval from the finance ministry.2FINANCEif an authority obligates an amount of money for something, it officially says it will spend that amount on itThe Pentagon has obligated $987.9 million to overhaul and improve the aircraft.→ See Verb tableOrigin obligate (1400-1500) Latin past participle of obligare; → OBLIGE 