embargo

em·bar·go   (ěm-bär'gō)    n.   pl. em·bar·goes A government order prohibiting the movement of merchant ships into or out of its ports. A prohibition by a government on certain or all trade with a foreign nation. A prohibition; a ban: an embargo on criticism. tr.v.   em·bar·goed, em·bar·go·ing, em·bar·goes To impose an embargo on. [Spanish, from embargar, to impede, from Vulgar Latin *imbarricāre, to barricade : Latin in-, in; see en-1 + Vulgar Latin *barricāre, to barricade (from *barrīca, barrel, barrier, from *barra, bar, barrier).]

embargo

A governmental restriction on trade for political purposes. The objective is to put pressure on other governments by prohibiting exports to or imports from those countries.

embargo 

Main Entry: em·bar·go
Pronunciation: im-'bär-gO, em-
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -goes
Etymology: Spanish, from embargar to bar
1 : an order of a government prohibiting the departure of commercial ships from its ports
2 : a legal prohibition on commerce embargo on arms shipments>
3 : an order by a common carrier or public regulatory agency prohibiting or restricting freight transportation