blockading

present participle of blockade
1
as in guarding
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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2
as in besieging
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

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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 blockading Anti-riot police officers face protesting students carrying out blockading action outside the secondary school Le Corbusier, in Aubervilliers, northern Paris on October 1, 2026. — Chloe Taylor, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026 Iran has tried to push world energy prices higher with attacks on the region's oil shipping routes; the United States, in turn, has aimed to wreck Iran's economy by blockading its ports since June and slapping it with increasingly tough sanctions. — Arkansas Online, 1 Oct. 2026 That includes Yemen’s Houthi movement blockading Saudi Arabian maritime traffic near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 3 Aug. 2026 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 With just over 100 days until election day, the onetime border-blockading logger faces a steep fundraising climb, a sprawling statewide build-out and Maine’s pivotal role in Democrats’ bid for Senate control. — Kimberlee Kruesi, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026 Britain responded with a war-footing, blockading the Bay of Naples. — Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 15 June 2026 Iran had to shut in its own wells this month after the United States started blockading the strait. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 27 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blockading
Verb
  • At halftime, coaches showed players a clip of Williams, a 6-foot-9 forward who signed on a minimum contract, guarding the ball full court.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026
  • MacPhee positions all 10 outfield players goal-side of the penalty spot, with his best aerial defenders zonally guarding the six-yard box around goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
    — Liam Twomey, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Israeli police have not announced any arrests or charges against any settler allegedly involved in besieging the Palestinian homes and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not publicly commented on the incident.
    — Reuters, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Israeli settlers have been besieging homes in the Palestinian village of Qusra for more than a week, with the Israeli military failing to end the violent intimidation campaign.
    — Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 17 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Murtis of the goddess Durga depict her astride a lion and attacking Mahishasura.
    — Tamanna Nangia, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The president appeared to be attacking Andrews, a biological woman, over her alleged support of gender transitions for minors and transgender athletes in women’s sports.
    — David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 5 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Blockading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blockading. Accessed 7 Oct. 2026.

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