這三個形容詞意思不同但有關連。Forceful 意為「有說服力的；堅強的，強有力的」，如 The president made a forceful speech. (總統發表了具說服力的演說或談話)；a forceful speaker (有說服力的演說者或談話者)；a forceful personality (堅強的性格)；The main opposition leader led a very forceful attack on the government in parliament yesterday. (主要反對黨領袖昨天在國會對政府發動強有力的抨擊)；而 forceful measures (強有力的措施) 可能涉及使用身體力量或暴力去執行動作，但也可能沒有。
Forcible 意為「強行的；使用暴力的」，如 The police had to make a forcible entry into the house where the robbers were hiding. (警察不得不強行進入搶匪藏身的那棟房子)；There’s a law to protect refugees from forcible repatriation to countries where they face persecution. (有法律保護難民，以免他們被強制遣返回國遭到迫害)。這個字一定是指使用身體力量或暴力去執行動作。
Forced 意為「被迫的，不得已的；勉強的，不自然的」，如 The plane had to make a forced landing because two of its engines were on fire. (由於有兩具引擎著火，飛機不得不迫降)；Amy tried hard to smile but it looked forced. (艾美努力微笑，但看起來笑得很勉強)。A forced landing (迫降) 是我們經常見到的片語，而 a forced smile (勉強的微笑) 和 forced labor (強迫勞動) 也經常應用於日常生活中。
值得注意的是，forcible repatriation 亦可寫成 forced repatriation，視從執行遣返或被迫遣返的觀點而定，但都違反了被遣返者的意願。