detention
noun
de·ten·tion
di-ˈten-chən 
1
: the act or fact of detaining or holding back
especially
: a holding in custody
2
: the state of being detained
especially
: a period of temporary custody prior to disposition by a court
Examples of detention in a Sentence
the detention of suspected terrorists
The jail is only used for brief detentions.
They both got three detentions this year.
He got detention for being late to class.
Recent Examples on the Web
The detentions are some of the highest profile examples of the kingdom’s efforts to stamp out corruption in recent years.
—
Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 5 Oct. 2025
Monday's indirect talks are meant to prepare the way for the release of hostages from Gaza and Palestinians from Israeli detention, mediator Egypt said.
—Sam Mednick, Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2025
Protests have hit the city in recent weeks over the ICE operations, concentrated outside the ICE detention facility in the suburb of Broadview.
—Rebecca Schneid, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
Combs has been jailed in a federal detention facility in Brooklyn, New York since his arrest in September of last year, and was facing up to ten years in prison for each of the two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution he was found guilty of in July.
—Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detention
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 5 Oct. 2025
Monday's indirect talks are meant to prepare the way for the release of hostages from Gaza and Palestinians from Israeli detention, mediator Egypt said.
—Sam Mednick, Arkansas Online, 5 Oct. 2025
Protests have hit the city in recent weeks over the ICE operations, concentrated outside the ICE detention facility in the suburb of Broadview.
—Rebecca Schneid, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
Combs has been jailed in a federal detention facility in Brooklyn, New York since his arrest in September of last year, and was facing up to ten years in prison for each of the two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution he was found guilty of in July.
—Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detention
Cite this Entry
“Detention.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detention. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detention
noun
de·ten·tion
di-ˈten-chən
: the act of detaining : the state of being detained: as
a
: temporary custody before a trial
b
: the punishment of being kept in after school
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share