Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To be or create a hindrance or obstacle.
- intransitive verb Sports To perform an act of interference.
- intransitive verb To intervene or intrude in the affairs of others; meddle.
- intransitive verb To strike one hoof against the opposite hoof or leg while moving. Used of a horse.
- intransitive verb Physics & Electronics To cause interference.
from The Century Dictionary.
- In base-ball, to obstruct unfairly a runner when he i s endeavoring to reach a base; also, so to obstruct a catcher or fielder who is endeavoring to handle or throw the ball.
- In foot-ball, to interpose between a runner and would-be tacklers in order to assist the former.
- To take a part in the affairs of others; especially, to intermeddle; act in such a way as to check or hamper the action of other persons or things.
- To clash; come in collision; be in opposition: as, the claims of two nations may interfere; the two things interfere with each other.
- In farriery, to strike one hoof or the shoe of one hoof against the fetlock of the opposite leg (of the same pair): said of a horse.
- In physics, to act reciprocally upon one another so as to modify the effect of each, by augmenting, diminishing, or nullifying it: said of waves of light, heat, sound, water, etc. See
interference , 5. - Synonyms Intermeddle, Intervene, etc. See
interpose .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To come in collision; to be in opposition; to clash; -- usually used with with.
- intransitive verb To enter into, or take a part in, the concerns of others; to intermeddle; to interpose; -- used with in or with.
- intransitive verb To strike one foot against the opposite foot or ankle in using the legs; -- sometimes said of a human being, but usually of a horse.
- intransitive verb (Physics) To act reciprocally, so as to augment, diminish, or otherwise affect one another; -- said of waves, rays of light, heat, etc. See
Interference , 2. - intransitive verb (Patent Law) To cover the same ground; to claim the same invention.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb intransitive To
get involved or involve oneself, causingdisturbance . - verb intransitive, physics (of waves) To be correlated with each other when
overlapped orsuperposed .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force
- verb come between so as to be hindrance or obstacle
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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So even if you think that, e.g., laws barring discrimination against citizens of Hispanic origin interfere with liberty, we already have thatissue.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Immigration: Costs and Benefits, in Liberty and Otherwise 2010
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It's amazing what you can do when you don't let your brain interfere with your body.
USATODAY.com 2004
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I think health and safety did interfere, which is why we didn't see the Young Farmers Tug of War.
Show Sunday Peter Ashley 2008
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I answered Messrs. Frick and Gary, as set forth in the letter quoted above, to the effect that I did not deem it my duty to interfere, that is, to forbid the action which more than anything else in actual fact saved the situation.
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I answered Messrs. Frick and Gary, as set forth in the letter quoted above, to the effect that I did not deem it my duty to interfere, that is, to forbid the action which more than anything else in actual fact saved the situation.
An Autobiography Roosevelt, Theodore 1913
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The said gentlemen not to interfere, that is, to take sides with either party.
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Messrs. Frick and Gary, as set forth in the letter quoted above, to the effect that I did not deem it my duty to interfere, that is, to forbid the action which more than anything else in actual fact saved the situation.
Theodore Roosevelt; an Autobiography Theodore Roosevelt 1888
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But I'm probably in a minority, as we're not supposed to "interfere" - even when criminal gangs like Gadaffi and his friends have have seized control of a country.
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Hall, not being versed in finance and not wanting to let his pastoral calling interfere with WICB's future, sent Banks to Jamaica to be briefed by Rousseau.
CaribbeanCricket.com 2009
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But that is all fundie parents do, interfere, which is very sad and sick and does often do lasting damage.
Women's Space 2008
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