intercept

American  

[in-ter-sept, in-ter-sept] / ˌɪn tərˈsɛpt, ˈɪn tərˌsɛpt /

verb (used with object)

intercepts, present (3rd person singular) intercepted, past participle, past intercepting present participle

1. to take, seize, or halt (someone or something on the way from one place to another); cut off from an intended destination.

   to intercept a messenger.

2. to see or overhear (a message, transmission, etc., meant for another).

   We intercepted the enemy's battle plan.

3. to stop or check (passage, travel, etc.).

   to intercept the traitor's escape.

4. Sports. to take possession of (a ball or puck) during an attempted pass by an opposing team.

5. to stop or interrupt the course, progress, or transmission of.

6. to destroy or disperse (enemy aircraft or a missile or missiles) in the air on the way to a target.

7. to stop the natural course of (light, water, etc.).

8. Mathematics. to mark off or include, as between two points or lines.

9. to intersect.

10. Obsolete. to prevent or cut off the operation or effect of.

11. Obsolete. to cut off from access, sight, etc.

---

noun

1. an interception.

2. Mathematics.

   1. an intercepted segment of a line.

   2. (in a coordinate system) the distance from the origin to the point at which a curve or line intersects an axis.

intercept British  

verb

1. to stop, deflect, or seize on the way from one place to another; prevent from arriving or proceeding

2. sport to seize or cut off (a pass) on its way from one opponent to another

3. maths to cut off, mark off, or bound (some part of a line, curve, plane, or surface)

---

noun

1. maths

   1. a point at which two figures intersect

   2. the distance from the origin to the point at which a line, curve, or surface cuts a coordinate axis

   3. an intercepted segment

2. sport the act of intercepting an opponent's pass

intercept Scientific  

/ ĭn′tər-sĕpt′ /

1. In a Cartesian coordinate system, the coordinate of a point at which a line, curve, or surface intersects a coordinate axis. If a curve intersects the x-axis at (4,0), then 4 is the curve's x-intercept; if the curve intersects the y-axis at (0,2), then 2 is its y-intercept.

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• interception
  noun
• interceptive
  adjective
• nonintercepting
  adjective
• noninterceptive
  adjective
• unintercepted
  adjective
• unintercepting
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• intercepting
  present
• intercepted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• intercept
  simple
• intercepts
  simple
• have intercepted
  perfect
• has intercepted
  perfect
• are intercepting
  progressive
• am intercepting
  progressive
• is intercepting
  progressive
• have been intercepting
  perfect progressive
• has been intercepting
  perfect progressive

Past

• intercepted
  simple
• had intercepted
  perfect
• was intercepting
  progressive
• were intercepting
  progressive
• had been intercepting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will intercept
  simple
• will have intercepted
  perfect
• will be intercepting
  progressive
• will have been intercepting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of intercept

First recorded in 1535–45; from Latin interceptus, past participle of intercipere “to intercept,” equivalent to inter- “between, among, together” + -cep- (combining form of cap-, stem of capere “to take”) + -tus past participle suffix; see inter-; cf. incipient

Explanation

When you intercept a pass in football, you grab the ball that your opponent had thrown to a member of his own team. To intercept is to stop something from reaching its intended destination. If a national intelligence agency intercepts a telephone call being sent from one terrorist cell to another, they stop the message and also learn a bit about what's going on in the terrorist world. If you're planning a surprise party for your friend and she arrives a half hour early, you might run to intercept her while everyone rushes to hide.

Example Sentences

That unit designs the spycraft tools agents use to intercept conversations, procure clandestine photographs and communicate.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026

AFP journalists in Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Ramallah heard a series of explosions and the Israeli army said it worked to intercept a new wave of Iranian missiles.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

Costel tells me, frustrated like many that Romania's air force couldn't intercept the drone.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

It will involve France deploying millions of pounds worth of drones, two helicopters and a camera system to intercept people smugglers and illegal migrants.

From BBC • May 26, 2026

I charged, and as the lion leaped to intercept me, I chunked a space food pouch into its maw—a chunk of cellophane-wrapped, freeze-dried strawberry parfait.

From "The Titan's Curse" by Rick Riordan

Related Words

• ambush
• arrest
• block
• catch
• cut off
• deflect
• hijack
• prevent
• seize
• stop
• take away