different between interfere vs intermeddle

English

Alternative forms

• enterfere (obsolete)

Etymology

Old French entreferir, from entre- + ferir (“to hit, to strike”), itself from the Latin verb ferio.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /??nt??f??/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /??nt??f??/
• Hyphenation: in?ter?fere
• Rhymes: -??(r)

Verb

interfere (third-person singular simple present interferes, present participle interfering, simple past and past participle interfered)

1. (intransitive) To get involved or involve oneself, causing disturbance.

   I always try not to interfere with other people’s personal affairs.

2. (intransitive, physics) (of waves) To be correlated with each other when overlapped or superposed.

   Correlated waves interfere to produce interesting patterns, while uncorrelated waves overlap without interfering.

   Where the radio-wave signals of the two radio stations interfere the listener hears nothing but noise.

3. (mostly of horses) To strike one foot against the opposite foot or ankle in using the legs.
4. (intransitive, followed by "with") To sexually molest, especially of a child.

   The investigation found the boys had been interfered with.

Derived terms

• interference

Translations

See also

• busy body
• interferometry

Further reading

• interference on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Latin

Verb

interf?re

1. second-person singular present active subjunctive of interfor

Portuguese

Verb

interfere

1. third-person singular present indicative of interferir
2. second-person singular imperative of interferir

English

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman entremedler (= Old French entremesler), from inter- + medler.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /??nt??m?d(?)l/
• (US) IPA^(key): /??nt??m?d?l/
• Rhymes: -?d?l

Verb

intermeddle (third-person singular simple present intermeddles, present participle intermeddling, simple past and past participle intermeddled)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To mix, mingle together. [14^th-18^thc.]
2. (obsolete, reflexive) To get mixed up (with). [15^th-17^thc.]
3. (intransitive) To butt in, to interfere in or with. [from 15^thc.]
   • 1623, Francis Bacon, A Discourse of a War with Spain

     The practice of Spain hath been, […] by war{{..}} and […] by conditions of treaty, to intermeddle with foreign states.

   • 1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones, Book I, Ch.2:

     I must desire all those critics to mind their own business, and not to intermeddle with affairs or works which no ways concern them; for till they produce the authority by which they are constituted judges, I shall not plead to their jurisdiction.

Synonyms

• butt in, meddle