in detention

idiom

: in a prison or similar place
Dozens of protesters were held/kept in detention for six hours.

Examples of in detention in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
About a year into the first Trump term, the politics of immigration turned on the Administration’s extraordinary cruelty in its treatment of undocumented children, thousands of whom were separated from their parents while in detention. Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2025 The sisters stopped visiting immigrants in detention during the pandemic. Nell Salzman, Chicago Tribune, 31 July 2025 Like many of the people in detention in Louisiana now, Ms. Mata Sánchez was arrested far from the southern border. Brent McDonald, New York Times, 31 July 2025 Under normal circumstances, those in detention would get top priority for a hearing within one to two weeks, according to acting ICE director Lyons. Patricia Lopez, Mercury News, 30 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for in detention

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“In detention.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in%20detention. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!