press into service
To make someone perform a task or duty, especially one they are not prepared or…To make someone perform a task or duty, especially one they are not prepared or willing to do; to make something serve a function, especially one it was not designed or intended for.
Meaning
1 senses(idiomatic)To make someone perform a task or duty, especially one they are not prepared or willing to do; to make something serve a function, especially one it was not designed or intended for.
Anyone with basic first-aid training was pressed into service as a triage nurse after the earthquake.
Forms
presses into service, pressing into service, pressed into service, pressed into service| Base form | press into service · to press into service |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | presses into service |
| Present participle | pressing into service |
| Past simple | pressed into service |
| Past participle | pressed into service |
irregular
Synonyms
1 synonymsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.