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embargo
[ em-bahr-goh ]
/ ɛmˈbɑr goʊ /
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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
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.
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In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Origin of embargo
OTHER WORDS FROM embargo
pre·em·bar·go, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH embargo
boycott, embargoWords 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
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.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.