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

The entry is paired with a suite of portraits of a number of Black men and women wearing MooreWraps, versatile multi-wear garments created by Moore’s sister with proceeds donated to victims of domestic violence and incarceration. — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026

Before his incarceration, Magaña managed to keep his mental health struggles mostly contained with medication for years, Alejandra said. — Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2026

During the mid-2000s, some tribal members, enticed by a chance at life-changing money, got involved in moving people and drugs, fueling cycles of arrest and incarceration that exacerbated challenges the community was already facing. — Ryan Devereaux, ProPublica, 10 Oct. 2026

Records show the school was billed $2,170—a relative pittance in the grand scheme of things—for a six-man crew from a local moving company to box up and relocate Moore’s belongings during the 43-hour window of his incarceration. — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 8 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