intercept
/ɪntɚˈsɛpt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.57 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To perform an aeronautical action in which a fighter approaches a suspicious aircraft to escort it away from a prohibited area, or approaches an enemy aircraft to shoot it down.
noun
An interception of a radio broadcast or a telephone call.
noun
An interception of a missile.
noun
The coordinate of the point at which a curve intersects an axis.
Example Sentences
- "The police intercepted the package of stolen goods while it was in transit."
- "[T]he emotion grew ſo violent that it almost intercepted my reſpiration."
- "The rights of men in ſociety, are neither deviſeable, nor transferable, nor annihilable, but are deſcendable only; and it is not in the power of any generation to intercept finally, and cut off the deſcent."
- "I must admit to being genuinely shocked when I saw those letters in my file. I always suspected that mail was monitored, but it never occurred to me that mail would be intercepted and opened."
- "the y intercept"
- "Because the horizontal-axis intercept occurs when y=0 and the vertical-axis intercept occurs when x=0, we can find the intercepts algebraically."
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin interceptum, past participle of intercipiō.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *keh₂p-, interceptum
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɪntɚˈsɛpt/
- British English: /ɪntəˈsɛpt/
Usage
Inflected Forms
intercepts (present, singular)
intercepting (participle, present)
intercepted (participle, past)
intercepted (past)
no-table-tags (table tags)
glossary (inflection template)
intercepted (first person, past)
interceptest (archaic, present)
intercepted (past, second person)
interceptedst (archaic, past)
intercepteth (archaic, present)
intercepted (past, singular)