intercept
Americanverb (used with object)
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intercepts,
present (3rd person singular)
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intercepted,
past participle, past
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intercepting
present participle
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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.
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to see or overhear (a message, transmission, etc., meant for another).
We intercepted the enemy's battle plan.
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to stop or check (passage, travel, etc.).
to intercept the traitor's escape.
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Sports. to take possession of (a ball or puck) during an attempted pass by an opposing team.
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to stop or interrupt the course, progress, or transmission of.
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to destroy or disperse (enemy aircraft or a missile or missiles) in the air on the way to a target.
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to stop the natural course of (light, water, etc.).
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Mathematics. to mark off or include, as between two points or lines.
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to intersect.
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Obsolete. to prevent or cut off the operation or effect of.
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Obsolete. to cut off from access, sight, etc.
noun
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an interception.
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Mathematics.
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an intercepted segment of a line.
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(in a coordinate system) the distance from the origin to the point at which a curve or line intersects an axis.
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verb
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to stop, deflect, or seize on the way from one place to another; prevent from arriving or proceeding
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sport to seize or cut off (a pass) on its way from one opponent to another
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maths to cut off, mark off, or bound (some part of a line, curve, plane, or surface)
noun
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maths
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a point at which two figures intersect
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the distance from the origin to the point at which a line, curve, or surface cuts a coordinate axis
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an intercepted segment
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sport the act of intercepting an opponent's pass
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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interceptionnoun
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interceptiveadjective
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noninterceptingadjective
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noninterceptiveadjective
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uninterceptedadjective
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uninterceptingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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interceptsimple
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interceptssimple
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have interceptedperfect
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has interceptedperfect
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am interceptingprogressive
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are interceptingprogressive
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is interceptingprogressive
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have been interceptingperfect progressive
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has been interceptingperfect progressive
Past
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interceptedsimple
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had interceptedperfect
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was interceptingprogressive
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were interceptingprogressive
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had been interceptingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing intercept
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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.
See Examples For:
According to Beskrestnov, Ukraine uses Starlink to help intercept drones, although exactly how this works has never been made clear.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Ukrainian troops have periodically delivered food and other supplies by drone from across the river, though Ukrainian officials say Russian forces sometimes intercept the packages, or punish those caught receiving them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
The shipment went through a freight hub at East Midlands Airport on the way, allowing NCA and Border Force to intercept on Friday.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
But I’d like to gently intercept your hand on the way there and redirect it toward wherever you keep your vinegar.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
We took a gamble that we’d be able to intercept you.’
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
The site has been expanded to include a sophisticated signals intelligence facility, which has prompted France and the US to consider moving their own bases in Djibouti to avoid Chinese intercepts, according to Kurlantzick.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
A top FBI official recently revealed that the bureau does have the authority to make such intercepts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
Israel's army sometimes intercepts drones that cross the border, but also often loses contact with the small, low-flying devices.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
The radar is a critical component of the ground-based missile-defense system, which intercepts ballistic missiles above the atmosphere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026
Bombarded with thousands of intercepts a year, she was used to creating order out of cacophony.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
The ballistic missile strikes launched on Haradh and Dhahran in the Eastern Province had been intercepted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
The Saudi-led military coalition said a ballistic missile had been intercepted and destroyed.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
As a rookie in 2009, the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft had three passes intercepted in his first game, two in the second, none in the third and one in the fourth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
The Saudi-led military coalition that backs Yemen's government said the missile was intercepted.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
In a 19-3 Cotton Bowl loss to Nebraska, he started at safety and was in on nine tackles and intercepted a pass.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
Since the start of the 20th century, when the British Royal Navy experimented with radio jamming and intercepting enemy communications, the vulnerability of radio signals has been exploited in combat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
With just over a minute left in the game, Rams cornerback Josh Wallace battled with Broncos receiver Pat Bryant before intercepting a Bo Nix pass at the Rams’ seven-yard line.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
"We are still intercepting them and we are bringing them to justice as well," she added.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Ukraine’s air force hasn’t yet released data showing how many jet-powered drones it is intercepting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Thanks in no small part to her decryptions, the Coast Guard was intercepting many more rumrunners, depriving the crime bosses of their profits.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
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.
