Word
intervening
Phoneticsin·ter·ven·ing
US/ˌɪntɝˈvinɪŋ/
UK/ˌɪntəvˈiːnɪŋ/
Definitions
01time between two events
adj. happening or existing between two events or dates.
adj. occurring or existing in the time between two specific events, dates, or periods.
“In the intervening years since they last met, he had moved to France.”
“The political landscape had shifted dramatically in the intervening decade, rendering the original treaty almost entirely obsolete.”
Academic
Usage
Always placed before the noun it modifies.
Teaching tip
This is most commonly used in the phrase 'in the intervening years' or 'in the intervening period' to describe changes over time.
Synonyms
02space between two things
adj. located between two things or places.
adj. situated or positioned between two physical points or objects.
“We could see the mountains clearly despite the intervening hills.”
“The signal was weakened by the intervening buildings, which blocked the direct line of sight to the transmitter.”
Formal
Usage
Attributive use only; it precedes the noun.
Teaching tip
While this can refer to physical space, the temporal sense (time) is much more frequent in modern English.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“In the intervening years he has managed the Swedish sides Linköping and Djurgårdens IF.” “This calls for a more coordinated approach: intervening earlier on hostile gender attitudes and paying closer attention to what young people absorb about gender.” “If those shows found Schaal kooking on gas, about as wilfully dotty and insubstantial as you’d ever wish comedy to be, the intervening two decades seem to have changed her not a jot.” Scan code
englishreference.com/q/intervening