Use mandatory when there is no free choice, especially with rules, training, reporting, attendance, testing, or legal requirements.
Use mandatory when there is no free choice, especially with rules, training, reporting, attendance, testing, or legal requirements.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| The safety course is mandatory, so you can skip it. | The safety course is mandatory, so you must attend it. |
| Attendance is mandatory for choose. | Attendance is mandatory for everyone. |
| The company made mandatory to report spills. | The company made it mandatory to report spills. |
| The form is very mandatory for new hires. | The form is mandatory for new hires. |
Use mandatory in this historical sense for mandate territories and administrations, as in Mandatory Palestine or a mandatory power.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| Mandatory Palestine means Palestine was required. | Mandatory Palestine means Palestine was governed under a League of Nations mandate. |
| The class was mandatory palestine. | The class studied Mandatory Palestine. |
| A mandatory power is a rule that everyone must obey. | A mandatory power was a state administering a mandate territory. |
| The mandatory period was optional history. | The mandate period was a historical administration. |
Use mandatory as a noun only in formal or historical writing, and prefer clearer words such as mandate-holder outside that context.
| Incorrect | Correct |
| This training is a mandatory for all staff. | This training is mandatory for all staff. |
| The mandatory signed the homework sheet. | The parent signed the homework sheet. |
| Britain was mandatory to Palestine. | Britain was the mandatory in Palestine. |
| The company created a new mandatory about passwords. | The company created a new mandate about passwords. |
Use mandatory for duties that rules require, not for strong recommendations. In historical writing, check whether the mandate-territory sense is intended.
Optional is the opposite of mandatory, and mandated is the usual past-participle form after a person or authority imposes a rule.
From Late Latin mandatorius, meaning belonging to one who commands, through the family of mandate. The core idea is an authoritative command or commission.
What does mandatory mean?
Mandatory means required by a law, rule, order, policy, or other authority.
Is mandatory the same as compulsory?
Yes. Compulsory, required, and obligatory are common synonyms for mandatory.
What is the opposite of mandatory?
The main opposites of mandatory are optional, voluntary, discretionary, and elective.
Can mandatory mean optional?
No. Mandatory means there is no free choice, so using it for optional rules reverses the meaning.
What is the difference between mandatory and mandated?
Mandatory describes something required. Mandated usually means imposed or ordered by an authority.
What does Mandatory Palestine mean?
Mandatory Palestine refers to Palestine under a League of Nations mandate, not to something that was simply required.
Can mandatory be a noun?
Yes, but it is rare and formal. A mandatory is a mandate-holder, especially a state administering a mandate territory.