blockade
Americannoun
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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)
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
Related Words
See siege.
Other Word Forms
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.
The actions are separate from the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, which is being carried out in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
Since the naval blockade began on April 13, the U.S. military has diverted at least 85 ships and disabled four others, according to U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026
The war has led to an effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 percent of global oil exports pass in peacetime.
From Barron's • May 18, 2026
It would also signal an intent to maintain the blockade.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
As I put the final touches on the East-West blockade, Cade thumped his way through the door bracing a heavy, sloshing cooler against his knees, and said, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith
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.
