intervene

verb

in·​ter·​vene ˌin-tər-ˈvēn 

intervened; intervening

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

• intercede
• intermediate
• interpose
• mediate

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

The suspects fled the area on their bicycles southbound on Carrillo Drive after witnesses attempted to intervene, police said. —Landon Mion, Fox News, 27 Feb. 2025

The district said that this information was never shared with school officials, preventing them from providing resources or intervening. CNN has tried to reach Jocelynn’s mother, Marbella Carranza for comment. —Dalia Faheid, CNN, 27 Feb. 2025

In the first case the Supreme Court has intervened in since the Trump administration moved to overhaul the federal government and make drastic budget cuts, Chief Justice John Roberts granted a stay and requested aid groups that sued the administration to respond by 12 noon Friday ET. —Rebecca Falconer, Axios, 27 Feb. 2025

A week later, the VA reinstated at least two of those employees, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a military veteran and Illinois Democrat who intervened on their behalf, tells TIME. —Brian Bennett, TIME, 27 Feb. 2025

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

Rhymes for intervene

• acrolein
• adenine
• alkylene
• aniline
• anthracene
• aquiline
• asphaltene
• atlantean
• atrazine
• butadiene
• butylene
• caesarean

Kids Definition

intervene

verb

in·​ter·​vene ˌint-ər-ˈvēn 

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 

noun

Legal Definition

intervene

intransitive verb

in·​ter·​vene ˌin-tər-ˈvēn 

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 

noun