considerable, great, terrible, tremendous
full, maximum
brute, sheer
reasonable (esp. BrE)
sufficient
excessive
unlawful (BrE)
deadly, lethal
explosive
physical
gale, hurricane
The wind was increasing to gale force.
hurricane-force winds

employ, resort to, use
In the end, we had to resort to brute force to get the door open.

take sth by
The troops marched in and took the city by force.

feel
Everyone felt the force of his argument.

by force
The king made laws and imposed them by force.

catch the full force of sth, feel the full force of sth, take the full force of sth
Our house took the full force of the bomb blast.
I felt the full force of her criticism.

force of personality, force of will
She used her sheer force of personality to keep the family together.

meet force with force (esp. AmE)
The country's attempts to meet force with force (= resist an attack using force) led to the outbreak of war.

the use of force
The regulations allow the use of force if necessary.

powerful, strong
weak
attractive
repulsive
external, internal
Deep internal forces cause movements of the earth's crust.

lateral
centrifugal, centripetal, electromagnetic, electromotive, gravitational, mechanical, nuclear, physical, tidal

apply, exert, generate, produce
The sun exerts a force on the earth.

increase
decrease, reduce
balance
The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.

act on sth
lateral forces acting on the car's suspension

balance sth

field
the force field of a magnet

force between
the attractive and repulsive forces between individual particles

a balance of forces
the balance of nuclear forces in atoms

the force of gravity

binding, legal, statutory (BrE)
The contract was not signed and has no binding force.

come into
The new law comes into force as from midnight tomorrow.

bring sth into (esp. BrE)

in force
Some archaic laws are still in force.

the force of law
Professional standards often do not have the force of law (= cannot be enforced).

considerable, formidable, great, irresistible, major, overwhelming, potent, powerful, significant, strong, unstoppable
active, controlling, dominant, driving, main, moving
motivating
persuasive
constructive, creative, dynamic, positive, progressive
destructive, disruptive, negative
She was seen as a potentially disruptive force within the party.

cohesive, unifying
competitive, conflicting, countervailing, opposing, reactionary
internal
external, international, outside
The play portrays a marriage torn apart by external forces.

invisible, unseen
natural
powerful natural forces such as earthquakes and drought

spiritual, supernatural
dark, demonic, evil, malevolent
‘There are dark forces in the universe,’ he raved, ‘and we are powerless against them!’

cultural, economic, intellectual, market, moral, political, productive, revolutionary, social
powerful social and economic forces

remain
Though officially retired, she remains the creative force behind the design business.

balance
This is a politician who does not like to balance market forces.

fight
to fight the forces of evil

force behind
Local parents were the driving force behind the project.

force for
Competition is a force for change in industry.

a balance of forces
shifts in the balance of political forces in Europe

a force to be reckoned with
With its new players, the team is now very much a force to be reckoned with.

the forces of nature

large
small, token
a token force of only 300 men

100-strong, etc.
superior
crack, elite, special
These elite forces are the best equipped and trained in the world.

combined, joint
the combined forces of MI5 and Scotland Yard
a joint task force

allied, coalition, multinational
strategic
labour/labor, sales, work (usually workforce)
the US labour/labor force
the company's sales force

armed, armoured/armored, military, paramilitary
government, loyal
enemy, guerrilla, hostile, occupation, occupying, opposition, rebel
He called on the local population to rise up against the occupying forces.

friendly
regular
reserve
all-volunteer, volunteer
conventional
nuclear
assault, combat, defence/defense, expeditionary, fighting, invasion, peace, peacekeeping, police, security, strike (See also task force.)
air, airborne, amphibious, ground, land, naval

assemble, create, form, mobilize, set up
A large expeditionary force is now being assembled.

send
the decision to send armed forces over the border

provide
deploy, employ, use
A small peacekeeping force will be deployed in the area.

withdraw
command, head, head up, lead
join
She decided to join the armed forces.

train
support
More troops have been called in to support the coalition forces there.

combine, join
The two companies have joined forces to form a new consortium.

control sth
Rebel forces now control most of the capital.

operate
UN forces operating in the region

in a/the force
people in the security forces

a member of a force, the withdrawal of a force
a deadline for the withdrawal of forces