interdict

[ noun in-ter-dikt; verb in-ter-dikt ]

noun

1. Civil Law. any prohibitory act or decree of a court or an administrative officer.
2. 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.
3. 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)

1. to forbid; prohibit.
2. Ecclesiastical. to cut off authoritatively from certain ecclesiastical functions and privileges.
3. to impede by steady bombardment:

   Constant air attacks interdicted the enemy's advance.

interdict

noun

1. RC Church the exclusion of a person or all persons in a particular place from certain sacraments and other benefits, although not from communion
2. civil law any order made by a court or official prohibiting an act
3. Scots law an order having the effect of an injunction
4. Roman history
   1. an order of a praetor commanding or forbidding an act
   2. the procedure by which this order was sought

verb

1. to place under legal or ecclesiastical sanction; prohibit; forbid
2. military to destroy (an enemy's lines of communication) by firepower

Derived Forms

• ˌinterˈdictor, noun
• ˌinterˈdictive, adjective
• ˌinterˈdictively, adverb

Other Words From

• inter·dictor noun
• unin·ter·dicted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of interdict¹

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; inter-

Word History and Origins

Origin of interdict¹

C13: from Latin interdictum prohibition, from interdīcere to forbid, from inter- + dīcere to say

Example Sentences

Schiff said the country needs to “get control of the border” with more personnel and technology to interdict people and drugs.

From Los Angeles Times

He later explained that he was using a definition employed by the Border Patrol that defines “operational control” as “the ability to detect, respond and interdict border penetrations in areas deemed as high priority.”

From New York Times

That helps its efforts to interdict suspected drug and weapons shipments.

From Seattle Times

A Border Patrol boat sat in the river observing the people but never attempting to interdict, question them or try to block them from coming.

From Washington Times

Meanwhile, a Border Patrol boat sat in the river “passively observing” the stream of people but never attempting to deter or interdict them before they reached the riverbank.

From Washington Times