intermission

[ in-ter-mish-uhn ]
See synonyms for intermission on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a short interval between the acts of a play or parts of a public performance, usually a period of approximately 10 or 15 minutes, allowing the performers and audience a rest.

  2. a period during which action temporarily ceases; an interval between periods of action or activity: They studied for hours without an intermission.

  1. the act or fact of intermitting; state of being intermitted: to work without intermission.

Origin of intermission

1
1400–50; late Middle English <Latin intermissiōn- (stem of intermissiō) interruption, equivalent to intermiss(us) (past participle of intermittere to intermit) + -iōn--ion

Words Nearby intermission

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use intermission in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for intermission

intermission

/ (ˌɪntəˈmɪʃən) /


noun
  1. an interval, as between parts of a film

  2. a period between events or activities; pause

  1. the act of intermitting or the state of being intermitted

Origin of intermission

1
C16: from Latin intermissiō, from intermittere to leave off, intermit

Derived forms of intermission

  • intermissive, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012