intervention

American  

[in-ter-ven-shuhn] / ˌɪn tərˈvɛn ʃən /

noun

1. the act or fact of coming or occurring between two people, things, or times.

   Squabbling siblings generally work things out themselves, but this fight called for parental intervention.

   Even the intervention of 20 years hadn’t erased their mutual dislike.

2. interposition or interference of one state in the affairs of another.

   The UN’s prohibition of armed intervention in the civil war can easily be criticized as antihumanitarian.

3. a planned confrontation of someone engaging in self-destructive behavior, such as substance abuse, to convince them to seek treatment.

   She thought her drinking was a well-kept secret until she came home to find six of her siblings and friends ready to conduct an intervention.

4. Education. a targeted short-term teaching strategy for students with specific needs.

   Reading interventions kept several of her students from having to switch to remedial classes.

5. Medicine/Medical. a treatment, procedure, or other action taken to prevent or treat disease, or to improve health in other ways.

   The patient has responded well to nonpharmacological interventions for high blood pressure.

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intervention British  

/ ˌɪntəˈvɛnʃən /

noun

1. the act of intervening

2. any interference in the affairs of others, esp by one state in the affairs of another

3. economics the action of a central bank in supporting the international value of a currency by buying large quantities of the currency to keep the price up

4. commerce the action of the EU in buying up surplus produce when the market price drops to a certain value

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Other Word Forms

• interventional
  adjective
• interventionary
  adjective
• prointervention
  adjective
• reintervention
  noun

Etymology

Origin of intervention

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin interventiōn-, stem of interventiō “interruption, occurrence”; equivalent to intervene + -tion

Explanation

An intervention is the act of inserting one thing between others, like a person trying to help. You could be the subject of a school intervention if your teachers call your parents about the bad grades you've been hiding. Intervention comes from the Latin intervenire, meaning "to come between, interrupt." Often an intervention is intended to make things better, like the US government's intervention to give food and aid to Haiti after the earthquake. One common use of the word refers to a specific type of meeting, or intervention, that happens with the family and friends of a drug addict; they join together to try to convince the drug user to change their ways and live a healthier life.

Example Sentences

There has been no announcement of plans for any military intervention but Cuba is on edge. especially as surveillance activity in the Caribbean increases.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

"Revisiting the definition of B12 deficiency to incorporate functional biomarkers could lead to earlier intervention and prevention of cognitive decline."

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

A recent poll by El Toque, a Cuban news site, found that 56% of the island’s residents support a U.S. military intervention.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Iris Herrera, a 58-year-old self-employed woman, said she worried about a US military intervention in Cuba.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

The same thing happens in nature, he realized, without human intervention.

From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman

Related Words

• interference
• mediation