blockade
Americannoun
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blockades
plural
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the isolating, closing off, or surrounding of a place, as a port, harbor, or city, by hostile ships or troops to prevent entrance or exit.
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any obstruction of passage or progress.
We had difficulty in getting through the blockade of bodyguards.
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Pathology. interruption or inhibition of a normal physiological signal, as a nerve impulse or a heart muscle–contraction impulse.
verb (used with object)
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blockades,
present (3rd person singular)
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blockaded,
past participle, past
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blockading
present participle
noun
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military the interdiction of a nation's sea lines of communications, esp of an individual port by the use of sea power
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something that prevents access or progress
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med the inhibition of the effect of a hormone or a drug, a transport system, or the action of a nerve by a drug
verb
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to impose a blockade on
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to obstruct the way to
Synonym Usage
See siege.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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blockadernoun
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counterblockadenoun
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preblockadenoun
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nonblockadedadjective
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problockadeadjective
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unblockadedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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blockadesimple
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blockadessimple
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have blockadedperfect
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has blockadedperfect
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am blockadingprogressive
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are blockadingprogressive
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is blockadingprogressive
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have been blockadingperfect progressive
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has been blockadingperfect progressive
Past
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blockadedsimple
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had blockadedperfect
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was blockadingprogressive
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were blockadingprogressive
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had been blockadingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of blockade
1670–80; block (in the sense “to create obstacles”) + -ade 1
Explanation
A blockade is an obstacle that stands between you and something you're trying to reach. After a robbery, police might set up a blockade around the neighborhood to catch the thief. Anything that impedes or halts progress is a blockade. If you join the military, you might find yourself building a blockade to confine your enemies and isolate them from the outside world. If you think of the root of this word, block, then you've pretty much got the meaning right there. If you don't want your little sister to disturb the house of cards you're building in my room, you can take lots of pillows and make a fort to use as a blockade to keep her from wandering in and knocking everything over.
Vocabulary lists containing blockade
The American Civil War
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The American Revolution - Introductory
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The strike group twice enacted the most effective naval blockade in modern history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
When the capital came under siege by Islamist fighters, they managed to impose a partial blockade there and total blockades elsewhere including the city of Ségou.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
He reimposed the blockade in July after Iran started attacking ships again to assert its control over the strait.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
They began attacks on shipping last month - announcing a naval blockade of Saudi ports.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
I tried going around back, but he shuffled sideways, arms out, doing this blockade dance sort of thing so I couldn’t get by.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
When the capital came under siege by Islamist fighters, they managed to impose a partial blockade there and total blockades elsewhere including the city of Ségou.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Kirchner, one of them, wanted to engage in acts of civil disobedience, such as blockades of OpenAI’s offices, to bring more attention to the cause, according to Elmore and others in the group.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
In recent years it has stepped up military drills near Taiwan, including simulating blockades on the island.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
He has repeatedly called for dialogue with protesters but on Wednesday announced a bill to declare a state of emergency, which would authorize military deployment to crack down and clear the blockades.
From Barron's ● Jun. 6, 2026
We were trying to outwit Death on this trip, rise above it, penetrate the blockades it put up between us and May.
From "Missing May" by Cynthia Rylant
Overshadowing the days before the tournament are thousands of protesting teachers, who have blockaded highways and led the government to cordon off the historic Zocalo square with metal barricades.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
But Brent and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate retreated more than two percent Wednesday on renewed hopes a deal to reopen the blockaded Strait of Hormuz was on track.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
A pipeline from the oilfields of Abu Dhabi runs to Fujairah, allowing limited amounts of crude to be loaded on to tankers and shipped to world markets despite the strait being effectively blockaded.
From BBC ● May 4, 2026
Only 40% of Iran’s trade can be redirected away from blockaded ports, the Iranian Shipping Association said Thursday via the Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s security services.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
“What is there to buy in Biafra? They have blockaded us kpam-kpam.”
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
ICE reported a half-dozen arrests outside the facility after masked agents used force against protestors who they said were blockading the entrances to the facility.
From Salon ● May 30, 2026
US President Donald Trump says that the US is going to start blockading the Strait of Hormuz after talks with Iran failed to reach a deal to end the war.
From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026
Elsewhere, police dismantled a makeshift barrier erected by protesters blockading western Galway docks.
From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026
It is blockading energy shipments and supplies for fertilizer and manufacturing and threatening theme parks and cultural sites worldwide through its proxy network.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026
The British believed that by blockading German shipping lanes and seaports, they could starve Germany into submission.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
