intercept
/ [with object]- Until now it has been legally prevented from intercepting communications amongst Canadians within Canada.
- To the fore came satellite imagery and the National Security Agency's capacity to intercept communications.
- The other agencies have a similar problem, but NSA is our intelligence-gathering agency that intercepts the airwaves, and they pick up more conversations than any other intelligence-gatherer.
Synonyms
- There is essentially a linear relationship between the total dry matter produced by a crop and the radiation intercepted by it.
- This light is intercepted by the two tracking detectors, and this provides a means for developing a control for the tracking system.
- Thus, it must be something that is happening in the atmosphere to intercept solar radiation.
/- They knew that the operation was in trouble from intercepts of Japanese radio traffic.
- But these officials said they are not certain how reliable the information is and said there are no radio intercepts or other types of evidence to corroborate the reports.
- We have the ability to read their mail through radio intercepts.
- Because the intercept was expected to pass through the origin, it was fixed at zero for each fit.
- This relationship is decreasing, with a slope and intercept significantly different from zero.
Derivatives
interception
- A number of finely timed interceptions and tackles.
- Players in the zone perform more game changing moves, like forcing fumbles or interceptions, or breaking tackles or opening holes for larger plays.
- There is now a touch of elegance and effectiveness in his interceptions and tackling.
interceptive
/ adjective ...- Likewise he has been a colossal force throughout this campaign and his interceptive vision has been an important factor in their progress.
- His first came from a tight angle on the right, his second after great interceptive play.
- ‘This work demonstrates the use of simple control mechanisms that utilize invariant geometric properties to accomplish interceptive tasks,’ the researchers conclude.
Origin
Late Middle English (in the senses 'contain between limits' and 'halt (an effect')): from Latin intercept- 'caught between', from the verb intercipere, from inter- 'between' + capere 'take'.
capable from mid 16th century:
The first recorded sense of this was ‘able to take in’, physically or mentally. It comes from Latin capere ‘take or hold’ which is found in many other English words including: accept (Late Middle English) from ad- ‘to’ and capere; anticipation (Late Middle English) ‘acting or taking in advance’; capacity (Late Middle English) ‘ability to hold’; caption (Late Middle English) originally an act of capture; captive (Late Middle English); catch (Middle English); chase (Middle English); conceive (Middle English) literally ‘take together’; except (Late Middle English) ‘take out of’; incapacity (early 17th century) inability to hold; intercept (Late Middle English) to take between; perceive (Middle English) to hold entirely; prince; receive (Middle English) ‘take back’; susceptible (early 17th century) literally ‘that can be taken from below’.