noun
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the act of detaining or state of being detained
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custody or confinement, esp of a suspect awaiting trial
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( as modifier )
a detention order
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a form of punishment in which a pupil is detained after school
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the withholding of something belonging to or claimed by another
Other Word Forms
- nondetention noun
- predetention noun
Etymology
Origin of detention
1400–50; late Middle English < Latin dētentiōn- (stem of dētentiō ), equivalent to dētent ( us ) detained (past participle of dētinēre; detain ) + -iōn- -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Russia's embassy in Belgium said it had not been officially notified of the tanker's detention, nor informed about the nationality of its crew.
From Barron's
UN experts, including the special rapporteur on human rights for Iran Mai Sato, stress that internet restrictions and widespread detentions make it "impossible to determine the true scale of the violent crackdown" at this stage.
From BBC
AFP reporters met prisoners of war from Kenya, Togo, Cameroon and Nigeria during a visit to detention centre in Ukraine late last year.
From Barron's
The UN says 73 of its staff "remain arbitrarily detained" by the Houthis, with some of these detentions going back to 2021.
From BBC
Following the attack, Durham Constabulary said a male prisoner in his mid-40s suspected of carrying out the attack was "in detention" but had not been arrested "at this stage".
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
