imprison

verb

im·​pris·​on im-ˈpri-zᵊn 

imprisoned; imprisoning; imprisons

transitive verb

: to put in or as if in prison : confine

imprisonment

im-ˈpri-zᵊn-mənt 

noun

Synonyms of imprison

• jail
• incarcerate

Examples of imprison in a Sentence

He was imprisoned for murder.

He has threatened to imprison his political opponents.

Recent Examples on the Web

More than one hundred thousand civilians were imprisoned and more than two hundred thousand were killed. —Victor J. Blue, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

In addition to those being imprisoned, throughout the day immigrants arrive at this office for mandatory appointments. —Tim Dunn, Boston Herald, 22 Nov. 2025

And if your children have a big heart for critters, they might be bothered by a scene where Elphaba finds the cages where the Wizard keeps animals imprisoned. —Brian Truitt, USA Today, 20 Nov. 2025

Patterson initially was charged with one count of election fraud — voting by disqualified person, which is a Class I felony and punishable by not more than $10,000, or imprisoned up to 3½ years, or both. —Chris Ramirez, jsonline.com, 20 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French emprisoner, from en- + prison prison

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for imprison

• arisen
• kisan
• mizzen
• nisan
• prison
• risen

Kids Definition

imprison

verb

im·​pris·​on im-ˈpriz-ᵊn 

imprisoned; imprisoning

-ˈpriz-(ə-)niŋ

: to put in or as if in prison

imprisonment

-ˈpriz-ən-mənt 

noun

Legal Definition

imprison

transitive verb

im·​pris·​on

: to confine in prison especially as punishment for a crime compare false imprisonment

imprisonment noun