injunction

American  

[in-juhngk-shuhn] / ɪnˈdʒʌŋk ʃən /

noun

injunctions plural

1. Law. a judicial process or order requiring the person or persons to whom it is directed to do a particular act or to refrain from doing a particular act.

2. an act or instance of enjoining.

3. a command; order; admonition.

   the injunctions of the Lord.

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injunction British  

/ ɪnˈdʒʌŋkʃən /

noun

1. law an instruction or order issued by a court to a party to an action, esp to refrain from some act, such as causing a nuisance

2. a command, admonition, etc

3. the act of enjoining

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injunction Cultural  

1. A court order that either compels or restrains an act by an individual, organization, or government official. In labor – management relations, injunctions have been used to prevent workers from going on strike.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• injunctive
  adjective
• injunctively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• injunctions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of injunction

1520–30; < Late Latin injunctiōn- (stem of injunctiō ), equivalent to Latin injunct ( us ) (past participle of injungere to join to; see enjoin) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

If your school begins building a swimming pool on land that does not belong to it, the city might issue an injunction to stop it. An injunction is an official order issued by a judge. In general, injunctions are court ordered settlements or commands. In the United States, judges cannot create laws, but they can require someone to do something or to stop doing something. If you were wrongly fired from a job, a court may issue an injunction to your former employer, requiring him or her to hire you back or pay your back salary.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

injunction injunctions

Apple said it was seeking damages and an injunction barring OpenAI from using its confidential information, calling the lawsuit necessary after OpenAI failed to respond to concerns the company raised in February.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

Since our reporting on Sawyer aired in February 2025, he has been banned from practicing following a legal injunction brought by Trafford Council.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

This is the nation of the Little League pitcher with the mustache, the driver’s license and the temporary injunction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

With that injunction being challenged in court, Sorsby determined he would give up the remainder of his college eligibility and enter the NFL supplemental draft by its June 22 deadline.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

Denied a preliminary injunction, the protesting citizens had to suffer the prescribed drenching with DDT, but thereafter persisted in efforts to obtain a permanent injunction.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Bonta, who is named in the suit, has a winning court record over the Trump administration, and has secured at least 12 final court rulings and more than 35 preliminary injunctions or emergency orders.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

She said the office’s gang unit “lost its primary mission” in 2021, because of a legal settlement that effectively ended enforcement of the city’s 46 gang injunctions.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

The Times story about the leaked documents relates to the court’s emergency docket: the calendar of pending cases not subject to ordinary briefing, such as stays and emergency injunctions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026

Last year, in an earlier iteration of the case, the court heard arguments on the power of district judges to issue broad injunctions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026

Poor child, she was bewildered by the many injunctions we laid upon her, and the curtailing of her freedom tried her sorely, though not a word of complaint came from her.

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya

Related Words

• admonition
• ban
• embargo
• instruction
• mandate
• prohibition
• ruling
• writ