The trail grew increasingly narrow as it climbed, until the hikers were obliged to walk single file. By the final ridge it had dwindled to little more than a goat path scratched into the hillside.
As used in the text, what does the word "obliged" most nearly mean?
- A
indebted
- B
willing
- Ccheck_circle
required
- D
grateful
Explanation
The narrowing trail forces the hikers into single file, so "obliged" means required or compelled, not the politeness sense ("much obliged").