noun / verb
embargo
im-BAR-goh/ɪmˈbɑːrɡəʊ/
An official restriction preventing a release or transfer.
A customs officer enforces the embargo by blocking freight traffic.
Etymology
Spanish embargo meant seizure or arrest. Applied to an order stopping ships from entering or leaving ports, this idea of official restraint underlies the broader sense of a ban on trade or activity.
In context
The U.S. should revoke the license of exporting arms to Israel. There has to be an arms embargo, and then Netanyahu will listen.
More examples
- The government embargoes oil shipments to the neighboring country.
- The report remains under embargo until noon on Monday.
- The journal embargoed the findings until the study was published.
Forms
embargo · embargoes · embargoed · embargoing
Similar words
- ban
- A broader prohibition, not necessarily involving trade or information.
- restriction
- A limit that may reduce activity without stopping it.