English Reference
noun

interruption

n.
US /ˌɪntɝˈəpʃən/ UK /ˌɪntəɹˈʌpʃən/ in·ter·rup·tion UK spelling interruption's, interruption's

  1. 01 B1 Intermediate

    something that stops an action or process for a short time.

    the act of breaking the continuity of a process, state, or activity; an event that causes a temporary cessation.

    Simple

    I managed to finish the report without any interruption from my colleagues.

    In context

    The sudden power outage caused a significant interruption to the manufacturing process, resulting in several hours of lost productivity.

  2. 02 B2 Upper Intermediate

    the act of starting to speak while someone else is already talking.

    the act of breaking into someone else's speech or discourse, often perceived as a breach of conversational etiquette.

    Simple

    Please excuse the interruption, but there is an urgent phone call for you.

    In context

    The moderator struggled to maintain order as frequent interruptions from the audience made it difficult for the speaker to finish his argument.

  3. 03 B2 Upper Intermediate

    a period of time when something stops before starting again.

    a time interval or gap during which there is a cessation of a continuous activity.

    Simple

    After a brief interruption for lunch, the meeting continued until five o'clock.

    In context

    The long-term study was compromised by a two-year interruption in data collection due to a lack of funding.


From Middle English interrupcioun, from Old French interrupcion, from Latin interruptio.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Origin Latin interruptio
Level B1 · Intermediate
Frequency Frequent
Updated