Meaning

To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given..

Definitions by Sense

1. To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given.
2. To recall a person or unit with such an order.
3. To cancel an order for (some specified goods).
4. (figuratively) To counteract, to act against, to frustrate.
5. (obsolete) To prohibit (a course of action or behavior).
6. (obsolete) To oppose or revoke the command of (someone).
7. (obsolete) To maintain control of, to keep under command.
8. An order to the contrary of a previous one.

Example Sentences

Near-synonym: counteract

to countermand an order for 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.

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’.”

Avicen countermands letting blood in choleric bodles.

For us to alter anything, is to lift ourselves against God; and, as it were, to countermand him.

Two thousand horſe ſhal forrage vp and downe, That no reliefe or ſuccour come by land. And all the ſea my Gallies countermaund.

Word Forms

• countermands
• countermanding
• countermanded

Synonyms for countermand

Related Words

When Should You Use Countermand?

Use countermand when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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