as in follows
to act according to the commands of
she taught her dog to obey her when she said "Sit!" most people obey the law and wear their seat belts
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of obeys
Shotwell aims to keep clear of geo-political debate—seeing to it that SpaceX obeys the laws and regulations of countries in which Starlink is licensed to operate, and sidestepping blame in places it’s forbidden but is being used anyway.
—
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 28 Mar. 2026
That orange line above is the rising 50-day and this name clearly obeys it.
—Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
The usual assumption has been that if a user overtly instructs AI to act as a delusion-invoking collaborator, the AI simply obeys those commands.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
But every order carried out under that logic erodes the institution that gives it — and the soul of the person who obeys it.
—Jon Duffy, Mercury News, 29 Nov. 2025
However, what has been less clear is whether dark matter obeys these same four forces.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 4 Nov. 2025
With analog simulators, physicists map a quantum system of interest onto an analogous system — one that obeys equations of the same form but is easier to configure and observe in a lab.
—Shalma Wegsman, Quanta Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
Testing whether gravity obeys the laws of classical physics or quantum mechanics is no easy matter.
—Jeremy Hsu, IEEE Spectrum, 31 Mar. 2021
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 28 Mar. 2026
That orange line above is the rising 50-day and this name clearly obeys it.
—Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 9 Feb. 2026
The usual assumption has been that if a user overtly instructs AI to act as a delusion-invoking collaborator, the AI simply obeys those commands.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
But every order carried out under that logic erodes the institution that gives it — and the soul of the person who obeys it.
—Jon Duffy, Mercury News, 29 Nov. 2025
However, what has been less clear is whether dark matter obeys these same four forces.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 4 Nov. 2025
With analog simulators, physicists map a quantum system of interest onto an analogous system — one that obeys equations of the same form but is easier to configure and observe in a lab.
—Shalma Wegsman, Quanta Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
Testing whether gravity obeys the laws of classical physics or quantum mechanics is no easy matter.
—Jeremy Hsu, IEEE Spectrum, 31 Mar. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obeys
follows
Verb
-
Choose one interaction to handle with calm and clarity today, and let that set a steadier tone for everything that follows.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The Ferrari Purosangue Handling Speciale follows improvements already made among the competition, such as Aston Martin’s 717 hp DBX S and Bentley’s latest Bentayga Speed—the latter now capable of drifting.—
Viju Mathew,
Robb Report,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obeys.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obeys. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
