countermand

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 25, 2024 is: countermand \KOUNT-er-mand\ verb To countermand an order is to revoke it, especially by giving a new order. // Orders to blow up the bridge were countermanded by local officials. [See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/countermand) Examples: "He [rugby player Lewis Jones] almost missed his 1950 Welsh debut as he was about to board an aircraft carrier for Hong Kong before the orders were countermanded." — The Daily Telegraph (London), 9 Mar. 2024 Did you know? In the military, one's mandate is to follow the commands (and sometimes the countermands) of the officers. Doing their bidding is not particularly commendable—it's simply mandatory. The Latin verb mandare, meaning "to entrust" or "to order," is the authority behind countermand. It's also behind the words [mandate](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mandate), [command](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/command), [demand](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/demand), [commend](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commend) (which can mean "to entrust" as well as "to praise"), and [mandatory](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mandatory). Countermand came to English via Anglo French, where the prefix cuntre- ("against") was combined with the verb mander ("to command"). It has been a part of English since the 1400s.