Meaning & use
interception
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The act of stopping or catching something on its way, such as a message, vehicle or object, before it arrives.
Grammar: Countable for one event, uncountable for the general idea: two interceptions, the interception of mail.
Patterns
- the interception of something
Police announced the interception of a large shipment of drugs.
The interception of phone calls requires a court order.
Radar allowed the interception of the missile.
nouncountablesport
In sports, a catch or block of a pass made by the opposing team, which gives possession to the defender.
Grammar: Common in American football and soccer: make an interception, throw an interception.
Patterns
- make an interception
- throw an interception
The cornerback made a diving interception in the end zone.
The quarterback threw an interception in the final minute.
His interception changed the whole game.
Word forms
| plural | interceptions |
|---|
Common combinations
- make an interception
- The safety made an interception late in the fourth quarter.
- throw an interception
- The young quarterback threw an interception under pressure.
- interception of communications
- The interception of communications raised privacy worries.
- missile interception
- The test showed that missile interception was possible.
- illegal interception
- Illegal interception of messages is a crime.
Synonyms and how they differ
- capture
- Capture means seizing something and often involves a person or object being taken, while interception focuses on stopping it on its way.
- seizure
- Seizure suggests taking something by authority, such as goods, whereas interception emphasizes cutting off its path.
- block
- Block means stopping a path or a shot and does not imply you catch or take what is blocked.
- steal
- Steal is the common sports word in basketball and baseball and often implies taking the ball from a player, not catching a pass.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: interception or interruption? interception or interjection?
interception vs interruption
An interruption breaks into something in progress, while an interception stops an object or message before it arrives.
interception vs interjection
An interjection is a short exclamation in speech or grammar, and is unrelated to catching a message.
Practice
In football, when a defender catches a pass meant for the other team, this is called an ___.
Choose one answer.
An interception is catching the opponent's pass. Intersection is where roads cross, and the other options do not describe a catch.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “interception”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.