interfere
Americanverb (used without object)
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to come into opposition, as one thing with another, especially with the effect of hampering action or procedure (often followed bywith ).
Constant distractions interfere with work.
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to take part in the affairs of others; meddle (often followed by with orin ).
to interfere in another's life.
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(of things) to strike against each other, or one against another, so as to hamper or hinder action; come into physical collision.
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to interpose or intervene for a particular purpose.
- Synonyms:
- intercede
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to strike one foot or leg against another in moving, as a horse.
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Sports.
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to obstruct the action of an opposing player in a way barred by the rules.
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Football. to run interference for a teammate carrying the ball.
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Physics. to cause interference.
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to clash; come in collision; be in opposition.
The claims of two nations may interfere.
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Law. to claim earlier invention when several patent requests for the same invention are being filed.
verb phrase
verb
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(often foll by in) to interpose, esp meddlesomely or unwarrantedly; intervene
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(often foll by with) to come between or in opposition; hinder; obstruct
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euphemistic (foll by with) to assault sexually
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to strike one against the other, as a horse's legs
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physics to cause or produce interference
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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interferernoun
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interferingadjective
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noninterferingadjective
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interferinglyadverb
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noninterferinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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interferesimple
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interferessimple
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have interferedperfect
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has interferedperfect
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am interferingprogressive
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are interferingprogressive
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is interferingprogressive
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have been interferingperfect progressive
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has been interferingperfect progressive
Past
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interferedsimple
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had interferedperfect
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was interferingprogressive
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were interferingprogressive
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had been interferingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of interfere
First recorded in 1520–30; inter- + -fere (from Latin ferīre “to strike”); modeled on Middle French s'entreferir
Explanation
To interfere is to try to stop something from happening. If you get into a fight on the street, people passing by might try to interfere so no one gets hurt. Many countries resent it when other countries interfere (get involved) in their internal affairs, just as people often dislike it when others interfere in their personal affairs. In this sense interfere is the opposite of minding one's business. On airplanes you're not allowed to use cellphones because, it's said, they interfere with the plane’s navigational systems.
Vocabulary lists containing interfere
Power Prefix: inter-
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"Fears and Phobias," Vocabulary from the article
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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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:
McBride fears the law would interfere with the making of devices like the one that activates his lifelike hand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
In response to his speech, the Chinese Embassy in Washington told Reuters that Beijing "has never and will never interfere in the presidential elections".
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
According to BMO, among Gen Z and millennial daters, 50% and 40%, respectively, said that these costs interfere with their financial goals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
However, Liang has been selective in choosing backers to ensure that commercial interests don’t interfere with DeepSeek’s long-term push in frontier AI research, they said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Hadn’t she specifically told him not to interfere?
From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon
If investors conclude for themselves that having a high concentration of individual stocks interferes with their goals, they might forgo this approach.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
If the weather interferes with your chances of seeing the Strawberry Moon tonight, do not worry as there are more opportunities to see full Moons this summer.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
The Hobbs Act prohibits robbery that interferes with interstate or foreign commerce.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
The antibody is designed to bind to proteins on the surface of the virus, which interferes with its ability to get inside human cells.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
It interferes, they say, and why take chances?
From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
Those green ecosystems are far different from California’s; our neighbor’s fires generally arise in massive boreal forests, which do not have debris or brush concerns because they’ve never been logged or otherwise interfered with.
From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026
“Internal affairs of employers and labor organizations must not be interfered with except to the limited extent that correction is required in discrimination practices.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
Viginum released a detailed report on the firm, stating that it interfered in several countries with "digital interference operations".
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026
The Civil Guard released a rare statement on Thursday evening denying that Gonzalez ever "participated in any operation against any Civil Guard unit" or "interfered in any investigation performed by" its officers.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
“I will not be interfered with by Jane,” said Mrs. Pocket, with a majestic glance at that innocent little offender.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
He does not want federal judges interfering in the redistricting process, not even to prioritise black Americans like himself.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
In a novel full of insufferable characters interfering with romantic soulmates, Mary commits the sins of both pedantry and priggishness.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
That is, he said, if he can stop the Chinese government from interfering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
Importantly, this process cleared extra cytokines without interfering with other important parts of the immune response.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 1, 2026
The bills were repeatedly voted down for fear of interfering with the progress of science, even though other countries —including, ironically, Prussia—had enacted regulations governing human research as early as 1891.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
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.
