countermand
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countermand
- /ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/ UK
- /ˈkaʊntɚˌmænd/ US
- /ˌkaʊntɚˈmænd/ US
Where it comes from
From Old French contremander, from Medieval Latin contramandō, from contra + mandō (“to order; to command”).
verb countermands · countermanding · countermanded
-
To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given.
Near-synonym: counteract
Similar: cancel, rescind, veto, override, counteract
- To recall a person or unit with such an order.
- To cancel an order for (some specified goods). Three of the maids of honour ſent to countermand their birth-day cloaths; two of them burnt all their collections of novels and romances, and ſent to a bookſeller’s in Pall-mall to buy each of them a bible, and Taylor’s holy living and dying.
- To counteract, to act against, to frustrate. Early on, Ezra gives her a lesson to countermand the endless female impulse to apologise: “Darling, don’t continually say ‘I’m sorry’. Next time you feel like saying ‘I’m sorry’, instead say ‘Fuck you’.”
- To prohibit (a course of action or behavior). Avicen countermands letting blood in choleric bodles.
- To oppose or revoke the command of (someone). For us to alter anything, is to lift ourselves against God; and, as it were, to countermand him.
- To maintain control of, to keep under command. Two thousand horſe ſhal forrage vp and downe, That no reliefe or ſuccour come by land. And all the ſea my Gallies countermaund.
noun countermands
- An order to the contrary of a previous one.
Translations
Every language
verb to revoke (a former command)
| Français | contrordre |
|---|---|
| Română | contramanda |
| Русский | отменя́ть otmenjátʹ, отмени́ть otmenítʹ, аннули́ровать annulírovatʹ |
noun an order to the contrary of a previous one
| Español | contraorden |
|---|---|
| Français | contrordre |
| Italiano | contrordine |
| Русский | отме́на прика́за/распоряже́ния otména prikáza/rasporjažénija, контрприка́з kontrprikáz |
Talk about this word "countermand." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/countermand. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. countermand. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/countermand "countermand." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/countermand.Cite this
@misc{countermand_2026,
title = {countermand},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/countermand},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
