[W/K] :: interrupt

  Interrupt \In`ter*rupt"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Interrupted; p.
     pr. & vb. n. Interrupting.] [L. interruptus, p. p. of
     interrumpere to interrupt; inter between + rumpere to break.
     See Rupture.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. To break into, or between; to stop, or hinder by breaking
        in upon the course or progress of; to interfere with the
        current or motion of; to cause a temporary cessation of;
        as, to interrupt the remarks of anyone speaking.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Do not interrupt me in my course.     --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To divide; to separate; to break the monotony of; as, the
        evenness of the road was not interrupted by a single hill.
        [1913 Webster]

  Interrupt \In`ter*rupt"\, p. a. [L. interruptus, p. p.]
     Broken; interrupted. [Obs.] --Milton.
     [1913 Webster]

  interrupt
       v 1: make a break in; "We interrupt the program for the following
            messages" [syn: disrupt, break up, cut off]
       2: destroy the peace or tranquility of; "Don't interrupt me
          when I'm reading" [syn: disturb]
       3: interfere in someone else's activity; "Please don't
          interrupt me while I'm on the phone" [syn: disrupt]
       4: terminate; "She interrupted her pregnancy"; "break a lucky
          streak"; "break the cycle of poverty" [syn: break]

  71 Moby Thesaurus words for "interrupt":
     arrest, barge in, blow it, bottle up, break, break in, break in on,
     break off, butt in, cease, check, chime in, chip in, countercheck,
     curb, cut in, cut off, cut short, dam up, damp, dampen, defer,
     delay, detain, disarrange, discontinue, disjoin, disrupt, disturb,
     end, go off half-cocked, halt, hinder, hold back, hold in check,
     hold up, horn in, impede, inhibit, intercept, interfere,
     interfere with, intermeddle, intermit, intervene, intrude,
     keep back, keep in check, meddle, oppose, postpone, punctuate,
     put in, repress, resist, restrain, retard, scotch, set back,
     slacken, snap the thread, snub, speak inopportunely,
     speak too late, stall, stay, stop, suppress, suspend, take a break,
     terminate
  
  

  interrupt 1. [techspeak] n. On a computer, an event that interrupts
     normal processing and temporarily diverts flow-of-control through an
     "interrupt handler" routine. See also trap. 2. interj. A request for
     attention from a hacker. Often explicitly spoken. "Interrupt -- have you
     seen Joe recently?" See priority interrupt. 3. Under MS-DOS, nearly
     synonymous with `system call', because the OS and BIOS routines are both
     called using the INT instruction (see {interrupt list) and because
     programmers so often have to bypass the OS (going directly to a BIOS
     interrupt) to get reasonable performance.
  
  

  interrupt
       
           1. An asynchronous event that suspends normal
          processing and temporarily diverts the flow of control
          through an "{interrupt handler" routine.
       
          Interrupts may be caused by both hardware (I/O, timer,
          machine check) and software (supervisor, system call or
          trap instruction).
       
          In general the computer responds to an interrupt by storing
          the information about the current state of the running
          program; storing information to identify the source of the
          interrupt; and invoking a first-level interrupt handler.
          This is usually a kernel level privileged process that can
          discover the precise cause of the interrupt (e.g. if several
          devices share one interrupt) and what must be done to keep
          operating system tables (such as the process table) updated.
          This first-level handler may then call another handler,
          e.g. one associated with the particular device which generated
          the interrupt.
       
          2. Under MS-DOS, nearly synonymous with "{system call"
          because the OS and BIOS routines are both called using the
          INT instruction (see interrupt list) and because programmers
          so often have to bypass the operating system (going directly
          to a BIOS interrupt) to get reasonable performance.
       
          [{Jargon File]
       
          (1995-02-07)