Compulsive
late 16th century (in the sense ‘compulsory’): from medieval Latin compulsivus, from compuls- ‘driven, forced’, from the verb compellere (see compel). compulsive (sense 1) (originally a term in psychology) dates from the early 20th century.
wiktionary
Borrowed from French compulsif, formed from Latin compulsus, past participle of compellere(“to compel”), from com-(“together”) + pellere(“to drive”).
etymonline
compulsive (adj.)
c. 1600, "exercising compulsion, tending to compel," from French compulsif, from Latin compulsus, past participle of compellere "to drive together, force," from com "with, together" (see com-) + pellere "to drive" (from PIE root *pel- (5) "to thrust, strike, drive").
Psychological sense "acting on an instant impulse to behave in a certain way" is from 1902. As a noun, "something that tends to compel," attested from 1630s; psychological sense "person subject to compulsions" is from 1957. Related: Compulsively; compulsiveness.
