BLOCKADE Synonyms: 57 Similar and Opposite Words

blockade 1 of 2

noun

Definition of blockade

as in siege

the cutting off of an area by military means to stop the flow of people or supplies it was the blockade of all the enemy's major ports that finally won the war

Synonyms & Similar Words

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blockade

2 of 2

verb

blä-ˈkād

as in to guard

to disallow entry into (a place) by means of a physical barrier at the entry point the militant protestors blockaded the whole area around city hall

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to besiege

to surround (as a fortified place) with armed forces for the purpose of capturing or preventing commerce and communication blockaded the city until it surrendered

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of blockade

Noun

The update was the first since Monday, when CENTCOM said 71 ships had been redirected since the blockade went back into place on July 14. — Mark Osborne, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026 The blockade choked one of the world’s most important shipping lanes and Iran dictated where the war’s frontline would be, rattling the global economy. — Justin Fishel, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Verb

In July, Houthi forces began blockading the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, the corridor linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, in response to renewed Saudi strikes on Yemen. — Frank Ahrens, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026 In December 2022, Baku began ramping up the pressure again, blockading Stepanakert by cutting off its sole road to Armenia, and cutting its gas pipelines and electricity cables. — Literary Hub, 30 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for blockade

Recent Examples of Synonyms for blockade

Noun

The siege at Waco, which had killed three Australian members of the Branch Davidians, was in the news, and the reporter looked at this American import with suspicion.

— Christopher Cox, Vanity Fair, 26 Aug. 2026
Not by tightening the siege on Iran directly, but by tightening the siege on those who help this regime, this terrible dictatorship.

— Mustafa Qadri, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of siege

Verb

There has been a spate of Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, and the village of Qusra has been besieged by Israeli settlers for weeks.

— F. Brinley Bruton, NBC news, 29 Aug. 2026
One of them, Muammar Ibrahim, reported for Al Jazeera’s Arabic network while the city was besieged.

— Mat Nashed, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of besiege

Verb

In Iran, Afghans have been attacked by mobs and baselessly accused of collaborating with Israel; some legal residents have had police tear up their documents in front of them.

— The Week US, TheWeek, 31 Aug. 2026
On Saturday, an Ebola response team was attacked on the outskirts of the town of Mambasa in Ituri province while responding to a call to secure a body.

— Constant Same Bagalwa, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of attack

Verb

Scott and Dylan walked away from faculty members and the video production crew and and Scott allegedly assaulted her in a janitor’s closet.

— Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
The reality star and superyacht bosun’s statement comes after Rolling Stone reported last week that he was arrested in Australia last December for assaulting an unnamed 29-year-old woman at a Sydney-area apartment complex.

— Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of assault

Browse Nearby Words

block

blockade

blockaded

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Style

“Blockade.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blockade. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of blockade

noun

verb

Example Sentences

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