embargo

[ em-bahr-goh ]

/ ɛmˈbɑr goʊ /

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See synonyms for: embargo / embargoed / embargoing on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural em·bar·goes.

any restriction imposed upon commerce by edict, especially against a certain country as a penalty or to induce compliance with demands or legal obligations: The United Nations fact-finding mission recommended the imposition of an arms embargo and other targeted economic sanctions on the rogue state.The software may not be exported into any country with which the United States maintains a trade embargo prohibiting the shipment of goods.

an order of a government prohibiting the movement of merchant ships into or out of its ports.

an injunction from a government commerce agency to refuse freight for shipment, as in case of congestion or insufficient facilities.

a restraint or hindrance; prohibition: A one-year embargo on her published dissertation allowed only the title, abstract, and citation information to be released to the public.

verb (used with object), em·bar·goed, em·bar·go·ing.

to impose an embargo on.

OTHER WORDS FOR embargo

4 ban, restriction, interdiction, proscription.

See synonyms for embargo on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of embargo

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Spanish, derivative of embargar “to hinder, embarrass,” from unattested Vulgar Latin imbarricāre, equivalent to im- im-¹ + unattested -barricāre (barr(a) bar¹ + -icāre causative suffix)

OTHER WORDS FROM embargo

pre·em·bar·go, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH embargo

boycott, embargo

Words nearby embargo

embank, embankment, embar, embarcadero, embarcation, embargo, embark, embarkation, embarkment, Embarras, embarras de richesses

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use embargo in a sentence

Washington has alternated with punishing Haitian leaders with cruel embargoes to humiliating Haitians with military takeovers since the country was founded almost 220 years ago.
The Murder of Haiti's President Presents a Rare Chance for the World to Actually Help the Country|Dimitry Elias Léger|July 14, 2021|Time
Ukrainian officials recoiled at the notion of lifting their arms embargo against Russia in the middle of a war.
Exclusive: Documents Reveal Erik Prince's $10 Billion Plan to Make Weapons and Create a Private Army in Ukraine|Simon Shuster/Kyiv|July 7, 2021|Time
The Blade can neither confirm nor deny if it lives up to the hype – there’s still a review embargo at the time of this writing – but we can say that it’s probably something you should plan to see on the big screen.
Summer film and TV preview|John Paul King|May 19, 2021|Washington Blade
Tokyo was almost entirely dependent on China for the critical metals, and the embargo exposed this acute vulnerability.
Japan’s global rare earths quest holds lessons for the US and Europe|Mary Hui|April 23, 2021|Quartz

The company would eventually name the plant after McKenzie’s boss, CEO Bob Scherer, who guided Georgia Power through a tumultuous period marked by the oil embargo of the 1970s.
The Coal Plant Next Door|by Max Blau for Georgia Health News|March 22, 2021|ProPublica
There was really only one good reason to maintain the embargo: Trade with Cuba strengthens the Castros.
Obama’s One Hand Clap With Castro|Doug McIntyre|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If the embargo were effective, the Castro brothers would have been doing Love Letters with the Duvaliers years ago.
Obama’s One Hand Clap With Castro|Doug McIntyre|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Obama has latched on to the failure of the embargo to topple the Castros as justification to shuffle the deck.
Obama’s One Hand Clap With Castro|Doug McIntyre|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But only Congress has the ability to completely lift the trade embargo, which has been in place since 1962.
Cuba Is A Kleptocracy, Not Communist|Romina Ruiz-Goiriena|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Most age cohorts still supported it, but those who left Cuba after 1995 were against the embargo by 58-42 percent.
Rubio’s Embargo Anger Plays to the Past|Michael Tomasky|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Between them, it was agreed that there should be no recalling of the past, but the very embargo whetted his appetite.
The Woman Gives|Owen Johnson
It had no effect; the price reached 49s., and on the 26th the council laid an embargo on exportation.
The Political History of England - Vol. X.|William Hunt
As, however, prices were rising, all parties agreed that the embargo was in itself a justifiable measure.
The Political History of England - Vol. X.|William Hunt
An embargo laid on the export of provisions from Ireland ruined her trade in cattle.
The Political History of England - Vol. X.|William Hunt
Sir, we believed the embargo unconstitutional; but still that was matter of opinion, and who was to decide it?
Select Speeches of Daniel Webster|Daniel Webster

British Dictionary definitions for embargo

embargo

/ (ɛmˈbɑːɡəʊ) /

noun plural -goes

a government order prohibiting the departure or arrival of merchant ships in its ports

any legal stoppage of commercean embargo on arms shipments

a restraint, hindrance, or prohibition

verb -goes, -going or -goed (tr)

to lay an embargo upon

to seize for use by the state

Word Origin for embargo

C16: from Spanish, from embargar, from Latin im- + barra bar 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for embargo

embargo

A governmental restriction on trade for political purposes. The objective is to put pressure on other governments by prohibiting exports to or imports from those countries.

embargo

OTHER WORDS FOR embargo

Origin of embargo

OTHER WORDS FROM embargo

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH embargo

Words nearby embargo

Words related to embargo

How to use embargo in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for embargo

Word Origin for embargo

Cultural definitions for embargo