impose on

verb (used with object)

to lay on or set as something to be borne, endured, obeyed, fulfilled, paid, etc.: to impose taxes.

to put or set by or as if by authority: to impose one's personal preference on others.

to obtrude or thrust (oneself, one's company, etc.) upon others.

to pass or palm off fraudulently or deceptively: He imposed his pretentious books on the public.

Printing. to lay (type pages, plates, etc.) in proper order on an imposing stone or the like and secure in a chase for printing.

to lay on or inflict, as a penalty.

Archaic. to put or place on something, or in a particular place.

Obsolete. to lay on (the hands) ceremonially, as in confirmation or ordination.

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verb (used without object)

to make an impression on the mind; impose one's or its authority or influence.

10.

to obtrude oneself or one's requirements, as upon others: Are you sure my request doesn't impose?

11.

to presume, as upon patience or good nature.

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a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.

a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.

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Verb phrases

12.

impose onupon,

to thrust oneself offensively upon others; intrude.

to take unfair advantage of; misuse (influence, friendship, etc.).

to defraud; cheat; deceive: A study recently showed the shocking number of confidence men that impose on the public.

Origin:
1475–85; late Middle English < Middle French imposer, equivalent to im- im-¹ + poser to pose¹; see also pose²

Related forms

im·pos·a·ble, adjective

im·pos·er, noun

o·ver·im·pose, verb (used with object), o·ver·im·posed, o·ver·im·pos·ing.

pre·im·pose, verb (used with object), pre·im·posed, pre·im·pos·ing.

re·im·pose, verb, re·im·posed, re·im·pos·ing.

sub·im·posed, adjective

un·im·posed, adjective

well-im·posed, adjective

Synonyms
3. force, foist.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To impose on

Collins

World English Dictionary

impose (ɪmˈpəʊz)

—vb (usually foll by on or upon)
1.	(tr) to establish as something to be obeyed or complied with; enforce: to impose a tax on the people
2.	to force (oneself, one's presence, etc) on another or others; obtrude
3.	(intr) to take advantage, as of a person or quality: to impose on someone's kindness
4.	(tr) printing to arrange pages so that after printing and folding the pages will be in the correct order
5.	(tr) to pass off deceptively; foist: to impose a hoax on someone
6.	(tr) (of a bishop or priest) to lay (the hands) on the head of a candidate for certain sacraments

[C15: from Old French imposer, from Latin impōnere to place upon, from pōnere to place, set]

im'posable

—*adj*

im'poser

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

impose

late 15c., "to lay (a crime, etc.) to the account of," from M.Fr. imposer, from in- "into" + poser "put, place" (see pose). Sense of "to lay on as a burden" first recorded 1580s.

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

impose on

Force something on someone; also, levy a tax or duty. For example, Don't try to impose your ideas on me, or The British crown imposed a tariff on tea. [Late 1500s]
Force oneself on others; take unfair advantage of. For example, Am I imposing on you if I stay overnight? or He's always imposing on us, dropping in unexpectedly with numerous friends. [Early 1600s]

Matching Quote

"I was born to be an editor, I always edit everything. I edit my room at least once a week. Hotels are made for me. I can change a hotel room so thoroughly that even its proprietor doesn't recognize it.... I edit people's clothes, dressing them infallibly in the right lines.... I change everyone's coiffure—except those that please me—and these I gaze at with such satisfaction that I become suspect, I edit people's tones of voice, their laughter, their words. I change their gestures, their photographs. I change the books I read, the music I hear ... It's this incessant, unavoidable observation, this need to distinguish and impose, that has made me an editor. I can't make things. I can only revise what has been made."

-Margaret Anderson

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