detention center
noun
1
: a place where people who have entered a country illegally are kept for a period of time
2
: a place where people who have committed crimes are kept as punishment
She spent several months in a detention center for women.
a juvenile detention center
Examples of detention center in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Around 300 South Korean nationals were taken into custody by immigration authorities last week, and they are being held at a detention center in Folkston, Georgia.
—
Siladitya Ray, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Cellphone videos taken inside hold rooms at the Krome detention center and a New York City federal building show alarming conditions.
—Isabelle Chapman, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
A day later, while visiting Morales Rolón at the ICE detention center in Aurora, Aldana learned that the government was accusing him of being a gang member.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Abrego, originally from El Salvador and currently being held in an immigration detention center in Virginia, has no ties to Eswatini, a landlocked country bordering South Africa.
—Ted Hesson, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detention center
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Siladitya Ray, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Cellphone videos taken inside hold rooms at the Krome detention center and a New York City federal building show alarming conditions.
—Isabelle Chapman, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
A day later, while visiting Morales Rolón at the ICE detention center in Aurora, Aldana learned that the government was accusing him of being a gang member.
—Jonathan Blitzer, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Abrego, originally from El Salvador and currently being held in an immigration detention center in Virginia, has no ties to Eswatini, a landlocked country bordering South Africa.
—Ted Hesson, USA Today, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detention center
Cite this Entry
“Detention center.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detention%20center. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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