incarceration

noun

in·​car·​cer·​a·​tion (ˌ)in-ˌkär-sə-ˈrā-shən 

plural incarcerations

: confinement in a jail or prison : the act of imprisoning someone or the state of being imprisoned

Despite the drop in crime in past decades, rates of arrest and incarceration in New York City have not gone down.

—Robin Steinberg

To this day, the Supreme Court has not overruled its infamous Korematsu opinion of 1944, which validated our mass incarceration in deference to national security.

—George Takei

Synonyms of incarceration

• captivity
• internment
• imprisonment
• prison
• confinement

Examples of incarceration in a Sentence

he was bored and frustrated by his incarceration in the quarantine

sentenced to six months of incarceration for dealing in narcotics

Recent Examples on the Web

But with Karen newly sober and the couple attempting to adjust to life after her incarceration, the cracks aren’t being smoothed out by the blurriness of beer goggles. — Shamira Ibrahim, Vulture, 2 Nov. 2026

This mandated that at least 10% of locally generated, unrestricted revenue be allocated to incarceration alternatives. — Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026

His government’s own hardline crackdown on gangs back home did restore peace to what was once the most violent country in the Western Hemisphere — though critics highlight his use of mass incarceration and accusations of widespread abuses. — CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2026

In 2015, Legend founded FREEAMERICA to help end mass incarceration and reimagine public safety. — Paul Grein, Billboard, 27 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1540, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for incarceration

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

Medical Definition

incarceration

noun

in·​car·​cer·​a·​tion in-ˌkär-sə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: a confining or state of being confined

2

: abnormal retention or confinement of a body part

specifically : a constriction of the neck of a hernial sac so that the hernial contents become irreducible