interdict
Americannoun
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Civil Law. any prohibitory act or decree of a court or an administrative officer.
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Roman Catholic Church. a punishment by which the faithful, remaining in communion with the church, are forbidden certain sacraments and prohibited from participation in certain sacred acts.
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Roman Law. a general or special order of the Roman praetor forbidding or commanding an act, especially in cases involving disputed possession.
verb (used with object)
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interdicts,
present (3rd person singular)
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interdicted,
past participle, past
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interdicting
present participle
noun
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RC Church the exclusion of a person or all persons in a particular place from certain sacraments and other benefits, although not from communion
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civil law any order made by a court or official prohibiting an act
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Scots law an order having the effect of an injunction
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Roman history
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an order of a praetor commanding or forbidding an act
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the procedure by which this order was sought
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verb
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to place under legal or ecclesiastical sanction; prohibit; forbid
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military to destroy (an enemy's lines of communication) by firepower
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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interdictsimple
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interdictssimple
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have interdictedperfect
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has interdictedperfect
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am interdictingprogressive
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are interdictingprogressive
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is interdictingprogressive
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have been interdictingperfect progressive
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has been interdictingperfect progressive
Past
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interdictedsimple
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had interdictedperfect
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was interdictingprogressive
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were interdictingprogressive
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had been interdictingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of interdict
First recorded in 1250–1300; (noun) from Latin interdictum “prohibition,” noun use of neuter of interdictus, past participle of interdīcere “to forbid,” equivalent to inter- “between, among, together” + -dic- (variant stem of dīcere “to speak”) + -tus past participle suffix; replacing Middle English enterdit, from Old French, from Latin, as above; (verb) from Latin interdictus; replacing Middle English enterditen, from Old French entredire (past participle entredit ), from Latin, as above; see inter-
Explanation
Interdict means to forbid, to nix, to veto. If your parents find out you're planning a party for a time when they're away , they will interdict it. If your principal has interdicted gum-chewing at school, he might set up a few random check points, interdicting gum-chewing students with detentions and a command to instantly spit out their offensive, long-lasting candy. To interdict, pope-style, is to in essence excommunicate, or prohibit a person or especially a place from the functions and privileges of the church.
Vocabulary lists containing interdict
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To Kill a Mockingbird
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You Can Say That Again: Dic and Dict
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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:
The notion that America can interdict China’s oil supply and impair its access to crude is “stupid, stupid, stupid,” Papic emphasizes.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 22, 2026
By contrast, a blockade allows US warships to loiter safely, far offshore in the waters of the Gulf of Oman, track vessels emerging from Iranian ports and interdict them at will.
From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026
The Coast Guard, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has law-enforcement authority to interdict ships in international waters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
He said U.S. forces would interdict vessels and clear potential mines, while also signaling a readiness to escalate militarily if needed.
From Salon ● Apr. 12, 2026
The following are the principal portions of Innocent's interdict.
From A Source Book of Medi?val History Documents Illustrative of European Life and Institutions from the German Invasions to the Renaissance by Frederic Austin Ogg
Environmental and community groups have sued companies including Shell in recent months, winning temporary interdicts that caused searches to be called off.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 7, 2022
The interdicts of the Courts were not merely disobeyed—they were literally torn in pieces and trampled under foot by incensed assemblies, amidst the applause of multitudes.
From Sketches of Reforms and Reformers, of Great Britain and Ireland by Henry B. Stanton
Their members have never been resigned to this comparatively solitary life; they have braved all interdicts and persecutions in order to turn it into social life and fraternal communion.
From Outlines of a Philosophy of Religion based on Psychology and History by Auguste Sabatier
Lewalé interdicts them from going; he says, "You may go, but leave all the gunpowder here, because Mirambo will follow and take it all to fight with us."
The five principal precepts, or rather interdicts, addressed to the Buddhist priests are: 1.
"The interdicted vessel, M/T Sophia, was operating in international waters and conducting illicit activities in the Caribbean Sea. The US Coast Guard is escorting M/T Sophia to the U.S. for final disposition."
From BBC ● Jan. 7, 2026
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez voiced defiance in comments at a public event in Caracas broadcast Saturday on state TV -- although he made no mention of the interdicted ship.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
The threat has left tankers stuck off the coast of Venezuela, with shipping data showing some vessels making U-turns rather than risk being interdicted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 17, 2025
On March 1, Lebanon’s Finance Ministry announced it interdicted a suitcase with $2.5 million from someone arriving at Beirut airport — presumably a cash infusion for the group.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2025
It was but fifteen minutes after that we approached the wharves of our interdicted city.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
Although China's ability to sever undersea communications cables, cyber attacks and interdicting maritime trade are the primary risk for Australia, "the direct strike threat is real and growing", the report said.
From Barron's ● Jun. 14, 2026
Given the difficulties in interdicting components, U.S. officials say they are also trying to starve Tehran of funds by going after buyers and shippers of Iranian oil.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
Border Patrol said Operation Return to Sender “focused on interdicting those who have broken U.S. federal law, trafficking of dangerous substances, non-citizen criminals, and disrupting the transportation routes used by Transnational Criminal Organizations.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2025
A similar Ukrainian strategy of interdicting logistics previously forced the Russians to evacuate Snake Island, a strategic chokepoint in the Black Sea.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 17, 2022
Continental System, Napoleon's scheme for interdicting all commerce between the Continent and Great Britain, carried out with various issues till the fall of Napoleon.
From The Nuttall Encyclopædia Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge by P. Austin Nuttall
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.
