countermand
/ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/
countermand · noun — an order to the contrary of a previous one. It carries an Arena rating of 1798, earned across 60 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, countermand ranks #947 of 17,180 for Most Ingenious Words, #1,479 of 17,162 for Most Elegant Words, #1,561 of 17,130 for Most Ponderous Words, #1,590 of 17,176 for Most Incisive Words.
countermand is pronounced /ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/.
Why “countermand” is a great word
COUNTERMAND — [Noun, Verb] An order revoking a previous one, or the act of issuing such a contrary command. From Old French contremander, from Medieval Latin contramandō, from Latin contra (“against”) + mandō (“to order, command”). First attested in late Middle English (1375–1425). Unlike “rescind,” which broadly annuls laws and contracts, or “revoke,” which withdraws licenses and privileges, to countermand is a specific, hierarchical act of formal reversal. It is the galloping dispatch rider overtaking the first, the radio crackle that halts bombers already in flight, the red stamp that nullifies the black type above it—a testament to the fragile authority of the second thought, and the quiet proof that no command is final.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From Old French contremander, from Medieval Latin contramandō, from contra + mandō (“to order; to command”).
noun
- An order to the contrary of a previous one.
verb
- To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given.e.g.“Near-synonym: counteract”
- To recall a person or unit with such an order.
- To cancel an order for (some specified goods).
- To counteract, to act against, to frustrate.
- To prohibit (a course of action or behavior).e.g.“Avicen countermands letting blood in choleric bodles.” — 1672, Gideon Harvey, Morbus Anglicus, Or, The Anatomy of Consumptions:
- To oppose or revoke the command of (someone).e.g.“For us to alter anything, is to lift ourselves against God; and, as it were, to countermand him.” — [1594], Richard Hooker, edited by J[ohn] S[penser], Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], London: […] Iohn Windet, […], →OCLC, (please specify the page):
- To maintain control of, to keep under command.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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