Search Results
Advanced Search
List Builder
Random Word

intervention

An intervention is the act of inserting one thing between others, like a person trying to help. You could be the subject of a school intervention if your teachers call your parents about the bad grades you've been hiding.

Intervention comes from the Latin intervenire, meaning "to come between, interrupt." Often an intervention is intended to make things better, like the US government's intervention to give food and aid to Haiti after the earthquake. One common use of the word refers to a specific type of meeting, or intervention, that happens with the family and friends of a drug addict; they join together to try to convince the drug user to change their ways and live a healthier life.

PRIMARY MEANINGS OF: intervention

1	n	the act or fact of interposing one thing between or among others
2	n	the act of intervening (as to mediate a dispute, etc.)

FULL DEFINITIONS OF: intervention

n the act or fact of interposing one thing between or among others

Synonyms:: interposition

Type of:: emplacement, locating, location, placement, position, positioning
the act of putting something in a certain place

n (law) a proceeding that permits a person to enter into a lawsuit already in progress; admission of person not an original party to the suit so that person can protect some right or interest that is allegedly affected by the proceedings

“the purpose of intervention is to prevent unnecessary duplication of lawsuits”

Type of:: legal proceeding, proceeding, proceedings
(law) the institution of a sequence of steps by which legal judgments are invoked

n the act of intervening (as to mediate a dispute, etc.)

“it occurs without human intervention”

Synonyms:: intercession

Types:: intermediation, mediation
the act of intervening for the purpose of bringing about a settlement; matchmaking
mediation in order to bring about a marriage between others

Type of:: engagement, involution, involvement, participation
the act of sharing in the activities of a group

n a policy of intervening in the affairs of other countries

Synonyms:: interference

Antonyms:: noninterference, nonintervention
a foreign policy of staying out of other countries' disputes

Type of:: foreign policy
a policy governing international relations

n care provided to improve a situation (especially medical procedures or applications that are intended to relieve illness or injury)

Synonyms:: treatment

Types:: show 44 types...; hide 44 types...; medical aid, medical care
professional treatment for illness or injury; massage
kneading and rubbing parts of the body to increase circulation and promote relaxation; modality
a method of therapy that involves physical or electrical therapeutic treatment; detoxification
a treatment for addiction to drugs or alcohol intended to remove the physiological effects of the addictive substances; chiropractic
a method of treatment that manipulates body structures (especially the spine) to relieve low back pain or even headache or high blood pressure; fomentation
application of warm wet coverings to a part of the body to relieve pain and inflammation; naturopathy
a method of treating disease using food and exercise and heat to assist the natural healing process; naprapathy
a drugless method of treatment based on the belief that disease symptoms arise from problems with ligaments and connective tissues; orthodontic treatment
dental treatment that corrects irregularities of the teeth or of the relation of the teeth to surrounding anatomy; treatment is usually by braces or mechanical aids; orthoptics
treatment of defects of binocular vision (such as strabismus and amblyopia) by nonsurgical measures (especially by exercises to strengthen the eye muscles); osteopathy
therapy based on the assumption that restoring health is best accomplished by manipulating the skeleton and muscles; osteoclasis
treatment of a skeletal deformity by intentionally fracturing a bone; acupuncture, stylostixis
treatment of pain or disease by inserting the tips of needles at specific points on the skin; G-Jo, acupressure, shiatsu
treatment of symptoms by applying pressure with the fingers to specific pressure points on the body; autogenic therapy, autogenic training, autogenics
training patients in self-induced relaxation; hydropathy, hydrotherapy
the internal and external use of water in the treatment of disease; rest-cure
rest as a medical treatment for stress or anxiety etc.; rubdown
the act of rubbing down, usually for relaxation or medicinal purposes; primary care
the medical care received on first contact with the medical system (before being referred elsewhere); aftercare
care and treatment of a convalescent patient; hospital care, hospitalisation, hospitalization
placing in medical care in a hospital; cardiac massage, heart massage
an emergency procedure that employs rhythmic compression of the heart (either through the chest wall or, during surgery, directly to the heart) in an attempt to maintain circulation during cardiac arrest; effleurage
a rhythmic stroking; petrissage
massage of the skin which is gently lifted and squeezed; reflexology
massage to relieve tension by finger pressure; based on the belief that there are reflex points on the feet, hands, and head that are connected to every part of the body; Swedish massage
massage combined with a system of active and passive exercises for the muscles and joints; tapotement
massage in which the body is tapped rhythmically with the fingers or with short rapid movements of the sides of the hand; used to loosen mucus on the chest walls of patients with bronchitis; therapy
(medicine) the act of caring for someone (as by medication or remedial training etc.); diathermy
a method of physical therapy that involves generating local heat in body tissues by high-frequency electromagnetic currents; nursing care
care by a skilled nurse; irrigation
(medicine) cleaning a wound or body organ by flushing or washing out with water or a medicated solution; bandaging, binding, dressing
the act of applying a bandage; holistic medicine
medical care of the whole person considered as subject to personal and social as well as organic factors; hospice
a program of medical and emotional care for the terminally ill; injection, shot
the act of putting a liquid into the body by means of a syringe; bloodletting
formerly used as a treatment to reduce excess blood (one of the four humors of medieval medicine); defibrillation
treatment by stopping fibrillation of heart muscles (usually by electric shock delivered by a defibrillator); detoxification
treatment for poisoning by neutralizing the toxic properties (normally a function of the liver); disinfection
treatment to destroy harmful microorganisms; digitalisation, digitalization
the administration of digitalis for the treatment of certain heart disorders; anticoagulation
the administration of an anticoagulant drug to retard coagulation of the blood; allopathy
the usual method of treating disease with remedies that produce effects differing from those produced by the disease itself; homeopathy, homoeopathy
a method of treating disease with small amounts of remedies that, in large amounts in healthy people, produce symptoms similar to those being treated; intensive care
close monitoring and constant medical care of patients with life-threatening conditions

Type of:: aid, attention, care, tending
the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something

Learn Launch

WORD FAMILY

USAGE EXAMPLES