obedience

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

Submission to authority

Nouns

1. obedience, compliance; submission, nonresistance; malleability, tractability, ductility; acquiescence, observance; obsequiousness, servility. See subjection.

2. allegiance, loyalty, fealty, homage, deference, obeisance, devotion. See respect.

Verbs — obey, comply, submit; observe, respect, abide by, meet, fulfill, carry out, make good; perform, satisfy, discharge (see completion); kneel or bow to, kowtow, salaam, make an obeisance; be at the beck and call of, do one's bidding, do what one is told, heel, walk the chalk [line], toe the line or mark; jump through a hoop; serve (see servant).

Adjectives — obedient, observant, acquiescent, dutiful, complying, compliant, loyal, faithful, devoted; at one's command, at one's orders, at one's [beck and] call; tame[d], under control, in line; restrainable; resigned, passive; tractable, docile, submissive; henpecked; pliable, pliant, unresisting, ductile. Slang, pussy-whipped.

Adverbs — obediently, etc.; in compliance with, in obedience to; as you please, if you please; to heel.

Quotations — Obedience is the mother of success, and the wife of security (Aeschylus), It is much safer to obey than to rule (Thomas à Kempis), Learn to obey before you command (Solon), Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God (John Bradshaw).

Antonyms, see disobedience.

II

(Roget's IV) n.

Syn. willingness, submission, compliance; see docility .

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) n.

compliance, acquiescence, submission, deference, subservience.

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) noun 1. The quality or state of willingly carrying out the wishes of others: acquiescence, amenability, amenableness, compliance, compliancy, deference, submission, submissiveness, tracta-bility, tractableness. See RESIST. 2. An act of willingly carrying out the wishes of others: compliance, observance. See RESIST.