# press into service

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/press-into-service
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

To make someone perform a task or duty, especially one they are not prepared or willing to do; to make something serve a function, especially one it was not designed or intended for.

## Examples

- We pressed the old chair into service as a desk.
- When the main projector broke, we pressed a laptop into service to show the presentation.
- Lacking sufficient professional staff, the commander pressed the untrained volunteers into service to help defend the city walls.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.