1
as in delay
an instance or period of being prevented from going about one's business
the returning vacationers' detainment at the border only lasted a few minutes
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in detention
the state of being held in lawful custody
she'll be kept in detainment until the trial if she can't post bail
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of detainment
The massive multi-agency immigration raid on the factory saw the detainment of around 475 people, with agents focusing on a battery plant under construction adjacent to Hyundai's main electric vehicle plant, a joint project between the car manufacturer and LG Energy Solution.
—
Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Sep. 2025
Even though the state’s adult-use market kicked off two years ago, distribution has been like a minefield, with drivers facing detainment from Border Patrol officers.
—Benjamin Adams, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The Carrillo Law Firm, which shared the claim with McClatchy News, and the Law Offices of Christian Contreras are challenging his detainment, arguing ICE and Border Patrol violated his civil rights.
—Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The arrest followed Knox’s detainment by Italian police for questioning — an interrogation that lasted 53 hours over five days without legal counsel or an interpreter present and led to Knox eventually signing a confession that put her at the crime scene and implicated Lumumba.
—Alyssa Davis, People.com, 27 Aug. 2025
The View additionally came under fire from political figures in recent weeks, especially after Navarro voiced opposition to people making a tourist spectacle out of the Alligator Alcatraz detainment centers in Florida.
—EW.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Videos of arrests and detainments circulated on social media.
—Jonathan J. Cooper, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2025
Others have been subject to detainment by federal immigration forces leading sting operations in and around the nation’s capital.
—Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 21 Aug. 2025
Opinions on the use of Fort Bliss for immigrant detainment have generally fallen along party lines.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 19 Aug. 2025
Peter Aitken, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Sep. 2025
Even though the state’s adult-use market kicked off two years ago, distribution has been like a minefield, with drivers facing detainment from Border Patrol officers.
—Benjamin Adams, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The Carrillo Law Firm, which shared the claim with McClatchy News, and the Law Offices of Christian Contreras are challenging his detainment, arguing ICE and Border Patrol violated his civil rights.
—Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The arrest followed Knox’s detainment by Italian police for questioning — an interrogation that lasted 53 hours over five days without legal counsel or an interpreter present and led to Knox eventually signing a confession that put her at the crime scene and implicated Lumumba.
—Alyssa Davis, People.com, 27 Aug. 2025
The View additionally came under fire from political figures in recent weeks, especially after Navarro voiced opposition to people making a tourist spectacle out of the Alligator Alcatraz detainment centers in Florida.
—EW.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Videos of arrests and detainments circulated on social media.
—Jonathan J. Cooper, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2025
Others have been subject to detainment by federal immigration forces leading sting operations in and around the nation’s capital.
—Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 21 Aug. 2025
Opinions on the use of Fort Bliss for immigrant detainment have generally fallen along party lines.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detainment
Noun
-
Even in areas accustomed to heavier snowfalls, accumulations in this range can result in delays, collisions and road closures if not treated promptly.—
Theo Burman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Therefore, the resulting stock drops can be viewed as buying opportunities — so long as the delays don't turn into order cancellations.—
Jeff Marks,
CNBC,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
More Than a Chaplain Within a few hours of Soliman’s detention, dozens showed up for an impromptu rally and news conference in the ICE center parking lot.—
Hannah Allam,
ProPublica,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Critically, American surveillance technologies allowed a brutal mass detention campaign in the far west region of Xinjiang — targeting, tracking and grading virtually the entire native Uyghur population to forcibly assimilate and subdue them.—
Sheryl Estrada,
Fortune,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This agreement removes that barrier to equal access for passengers with disabilities and provides a mechanism to compensate those harmed by Uber's past wait time fee policy.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Still, Sigourney Weaver's killer heels are worth the wait.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Still grieving the death of his wife and the imprisonment of his son, Brandis binges on booze but possesses a sharp and intuitive mind, even if his family life is in disarray.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The two men care for each other amidst the squalid conditions of their imprisonment in 1970s Argentina.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But my incarceration now, like my glorious delusion then, cannot quell that yearning for something more.—
Manuel Muñoz,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
-
The mix of short-term detainees and long-haul prisoners makes SeaTac a unique microcosm of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), where courtroom drama and the gritty realities of incarceration meet under one roof.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Detainment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detainment. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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