Interceptor

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A tool or person designed to capture or block items during interception, notably in communication contexts
2. An aircraft intended to intercept and destroy enemy planes ; a mechanism built to catch or block objects moving through a space
3. A fast plane designed to quickly engage incoming threats before they reach their target ; a gadget purposefully placed to stop or seize items in transit

Etymology: Interceptor is a plain formation: the verb "intercept" with the agent suffix "-or" added to the end. "Intercept" comes from Latin "intercipere," meaning to seize or catch between two points, built from "inter" (between) and "capere" (to take). The suffix "-or" arrived in English through Old French and Middle English from Latin "-tor," which marked a person or thing that performs an action. Together they describe something that catches what passes between one place and another. The sense of "intercept" as catching a message or signal in transit is what gave the noun its communication-related meaning. The verb has long been used of stopping people or goods on their way to a destination, and the noun simply names whatever does that stopping, whether a person or a device.

Synonyms: catcher, blocker, stopper