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Meaning & use

intervening

adjective·Academic

Last updated

UK/ˌɪntəˈviːnɪŋ/
US/ˌɪntərˈviːnɪŋ/

Meanings

  1. adjectivebefore a noun

    Happening or lying between two events, times or points.

    Grammar: Comes before the noun, usually years, weeks, time or period: the intervening years.

    Patterns

    • the intervening years
    • the intervening period

    In the intervening years, the town had changed beyond recognition.

    Nothing much happened during the intervening weeks.

    She had forgotten much of the intervening time.

  2. adjectivebefore a noun

    Located in the space between two things, often blocking or separating them.

    Grammar: Describes physical things lying in between: intervening hills.

    Patterns

    • the intervening space
    • an intervening wall

    Intervening hills blocked the radio signal.

    The intervening wall muffled the noise from next door.

    A few intervening houses separated the two families.

  3. adjectivebefore a nountechnical

    Coming in between a cause and its result and changing what happens, a sense used in law and research.

    Grammar: Appears in legal and scientific writing about causes.

    Patterns

    • an intervening cause
    • an intervening factor

    An intervening cause broke the chain of responsibility.

    The study controlled for intervening factors such as income.

    An intervening event delayed the trial.

Common combinations

intervening years
The intervening years had been kind to him.
intervening period
Few records survive from the intervening period.
intervening time
In the intervening time, the price had doubled.
intervening cause
The court considered an intervening cause of the accident.
intervening space
Trees filled the intervening space between the two houses.

Synonyms and how they differ

in-between
In-between is an informal, flexible word, whereas intervening is more formal and usually modifies a time period.
interim
Interim describes a temporary arrangement lasting until something else begins, rather than simply a gap in time.
intermediate
Intermediate means at a middle stage or level, while intervening means lying between two clear points.
interposed
Interposed is a formal word for placed between, and unlike intervening it stresses deliberate placement.

Word family

intervene verb
to step in to affect or stop a situation
intervention noun
the act of stepping in to change a situation
interventionist adjective
favoring stepping in, especially in the affairs of other states
intervener noun
a person who steps in or joins a legal case

Commonly confused: intervening or interfering? intervening or intermittent?

intervening vs interfering

Interfering means getting involved in a way that is unwanted, while intervening can be neutral and simply mean lying between.

intervening vs intermittent

Intermittent means stopping and starting at intervals, while intervening describes something that lies between two points.

Practice

Which word completes the sentence? Much had changed in the ___ years since their last meeting.

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