intervene

verb

in·​ter·​vene ˌin-tər-ˈvēn How to pronounce intervene (audio)
intervened; intervening
Synonyms of intervenenext

intransitive verb

1
: to occur, fall, or come between points of time or events
only six months intervened between their marriage and divorce
2
a
: to interfere with the outcome or course especially of a condition or process (as to prevent harm or improve functioning)
b
: to come in or between by way of hindrance or modification
intervene to stop a fight
3
: to enter or appear as an irrelevant or extraneous feature or circumstance
it's business as usual until a crisis intervenes
4
: to occur or lie between two things
5
a
: to become a third party to a legal proceeding begun by others for the protection of an alleged interest
b
: to interfere usually by force or threat of force in another nation's internal affairs especially to compel or prevent an action

Synonyms

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus
Choose the Right Synonym for intervene

interpose, interfere, intervene, mediate, intercede mean to come or go between.

interpose often implies no more than this.

interposed herself between him and the door

interfere implies hindering.

noise interfered with my concentration

intervene may imply an occurring in space or time between two things or a stepping in to stop a conflict.

quarreled until the manager intervened

mediate implies intervening between hostile factions.

mediated between the parties

intercede implies acting for an offender in begging mercy or forgiveness.

interceded on our behalf

Examples of intervene in a Sentence

Twenty years intervened between their first and last meetings. The prisoner asked me to intervene with the authorities on his behalf. The military had to intervene to restore order. We will leave on time unless some crisis intervenes.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Further study of what goes wrong in pregnancy at high elevation or when the oxygen levels reaching the fetus are low hopefully will reveal new indications of when to intervene. — Tim Vernimmen, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Mar. 2025 Kennedy then conferred with Trump about intervening. — Susan Page, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025 UltraViolet’s initiative is designed to pressure the Trump administration to intervene. — David Catanese, Miami Herald, 20 Mar. 2025 Benjamin Li, an emergency medicine physician at Denver Health and the health system’s AIM medical director, said the ER is an ideal setting to intervene in gun violence by working to reverse-engineer what led to a patient’s injuries. — Kff Health News, The Denver Post, 19 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for intervene

Word History

Etymology

Latin intervenire to come between, from inter- + venire to come — more at come

First Known Use

1587, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of intervene was in 1587

Rhymes for intervene

See All Rhymes for intervene

Browse Nearby Words

interveinal
intervene
intervenience
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Intervene.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intervene. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.

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Kids Definition

intervene

verb
in·​ter·​vene ˌint-ər-ˈvēn How to pronounce intervene (audio)
intervened; intervening
1
: to happen as an unrelated event
rain intervened and we canceled the game
2
: to come between points of time or between events
barely one minute intervened between the two phone calls
3
: to come between in order to stop, settle, or change
intervene to stop a fight
4
: to be or lie between
intervening hills
intervention
-ˈven-chən How to pronounce intervene (audio)
noun

Legal Definition

intervene

intransitive verb
in·​ter·​vene ˌin-tər-ˈvēn How to pronounce intervene (audio)
intervened; intervening
1
: to occur, fall, or come between points of time or events
may be held liable even though other independent agencies intervene between his negligence and the ultimate result— Hooks Superx, Inc. v. McLaughlin, 642 N.E.2d 514 (1994)
2
a
: to come in or between by way of hindrance or modification
intervene to stop a fight
b
: to become a party to a legal proceeding begun by others in order to protect an alleged interest in the subject matter of the proceeding
the Commissioner of Internal Revenue was granted leave to intervene— P. A. Freund
compare implead, interplead, join
intervenor
-ˈvē-nər, -ˌnȯr How to pronounce intervene (audio)
noun

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Nglish: Translation of intervene for Spanish Speakers

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