Meaning & use
interventions
Last updated
“interventions” is a form of “intervention”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nouncountable
Actions taken to become involved in a situation in order to change or improve it.
Grammar: Countable; the singular is intervention. Often used with 'government', 'military' or 'medical'.
Patterns
- government interventions
- military interventions
- interventions in something
- a series of interventions
The government announced a series of interventions to help small businesses.
Early interventions in education can make a big difference to children's reading.
Several military interventions in the region ended badly.
nouncountablemedicalspecialist
Medical treatments or procedures carried out to improve a patient's health.
Grammar: Countable; common in medical writing and health news.
Patterns
- medical interventions
- surgical interventions
- minimally invasive interventions
Doctors tried several interventions before deciding on surgery.
The report compared outcomes for patients who received different interventions.
Not all of these interventions are available in rural hospitals.
nouncountable
Occasions when someone speaks or acts in order to stop or change what is happening.
Grammar: Countable; often used in discussions, meetings, or therapy.
Patterns
- make an intervention
- a timely intervention
- interventions by someone
Her interventions in the meeting kept the discussion focused.
The teacher's quiet interventions stopped the argument from getting worse.
Family interventions can help someone accept treatment.
Word forms
| singular | intervention |
|---|---|
| plural | interventions |
Common combinations
- government intervention
- Government intervention in the market was controversial.
- early intervention
- Early intervention is key for children with hearing problems.
- military intervention
- The country opposed military intervention in the conflict.
- medical intervention
- Without medical intervention, the condition can become serious.
- make an intervention
- She made an intervention to correct the false information.
Synonyms and how they differ
- involvement
- Focuses on taking part in something; intervention suggests a stronger, more active attempt to change it.
- mediation
- Means helping two sides reach agreement; intervention is broader and can be one-sided.
- treatment
- Used mainly for medical care; intervention is used in many fields, including politics and education.
Opposites
Word family
- intervene verb
- To become involved in a situation to change it.
- interventionist adjective
- Favoring active involvement, especially by governments.
- interventionism noun
- The policy of getting involved in other countries' affairs.
Commonly confused: interventions or intervention? interventions or interception?
interventions vs intervention
This is the singular; interventions is the plural. Use the singular for one action and the plural for several.
interventions vs interception
Interception means stopping or catching something in transit, such as a message or a pass in sports; intervention means becoming involved to change a situation.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'interventions' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Several interventions' is correct because interventions is a plural countable noun. Option An is wrong because 'a' cannot go with a plural, option C uses the verb and noun incorrectly, and option D uses a plural noun with a singular verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “interventions”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.