block•ade
Pronunciation: (blo-kād'), [key]
— n., v., -ad•ed, -ad•ing.
—n.
- the isolating, closing off, or surrounding of a place, as a port, harbor, or city, by hostile ships or troops to prevent entrance or exit.
- any obstruction of passage or progress: We had difficulty in getting through the blockade of bodyguards.
- interruption or inhibition of a normal physiological signal, as a nerve impulse or a heart muscle–contraction impulse.
—v.t.
- to subject to a blockade.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.