countermand
1 of 2verb
ˌkau̇n-tər-ˈmand transitive verb
countermand
2 of 2noun
Did you know?
In the military, one's mandate is to follow the commands (and sometimes the countermands) of the officers. Doing their bidding is not particularly commendable—it's simply mandatory. The Latin verb mandare, meaning "to entrust" or "to order," is the authority behind countermand. It's also behind the words mandate, command, demand, commend (which can mean "to entrust" as well as "to praise"), and mandatory. Countermand came to English via Anglo French, where the prefix cuntre- ("against") was combined with the verb mander ("to command"). It has been a part of our language since the 1400s.
Example Sentences
WIRED, 8 Sep. 2022 Trump could sue to try to get the courts to countermand Biden. Andrew C. Mccarthy, National Review, 16 Feb. 2022 Alex Nedeljkovic made 29 saves in his first game against his former teammates, who did their best to countermand COVID-19. Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, 17 Dec. 2021 The chairman oversees the communication system that connects the president with combatant commanders who execute orders, but the chairman does not have the legal authority to countermand a launch directive. Loren Thompson, Forbes, 1 Oct. 2021 The second pilot tried to countermand the order, leading to another argument between the pilots. BostonGlobe.com, 18 July 2021 But the former president’s fitful bouts of nostalgia had little effect on policy: when his own Department of Defense moved to bar Confederate flags from military property, Trump did not countermand the order. Matthew Karp, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021 The idea that the AI driving system could utterly refuse to open a car door and countermand a human passenger is crazy talk for some. Lance Eliot, Forbes, 21 June 2021 Alongi, whose family has run a restaurant in Du Quoin since 1933, said residents had asked him to somehow countermand an Oct. 19 order by Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) reimposing a ban on indoor seating at dining establishments. Will Englund, Washington Post, 26 Feb. 2021 The Economist, 26 Dec. 2019 See More Word History
Verb
Middle English countermaunden, from Anglo-French cuntremander, from cuntre- counter- + mander to command, from Latin mandare — more at mandate
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Noun
1548, in the meaning defined at sense 1
countermanded
verb
Synonyms & Similar Words
- overturned
- reversed
- revoked
- canceled
- withdrew
- cancelled
- overruled
- repealed
- dismissed
- rescinded
- vetoed
- quashed
- rejected
- invalidated
- nullified
- annulled
- avoided
- overrode
- abrogated
- abolished
- removed
- negated
- vacated
- suspended
- recalled
- forbade
- voided
- dissolved
- dropped
- retracted
- abated
- enjoined
- aborted
- struck down
- prohibited
- disannulled
- rolled back
- called
- banned
- outlawed
- nulled
- eliminated
- called off
- disallowed
- forbad
- erased
- annihilated
- liquidated
- eradicated
- threw out
- wrote off
- broke down
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- enacted
- established
- instituted
- laid down
- founded
- ordered
- passed
- approved
- legislated
- authorized
- validated
- permitted
- ratified
- prescribed
- allowed
- endorsed
- indorsed
- sanctioned
- commanded
- cleared
- formalized
- decreed
- warranted
- legitimated
- legitimized
- mandated
- legalized