1
as in imprisonment
the state of being held in lawful custody
he's been in detention since the arrest
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2
as in delay
an instance or period of being prevented from going about one's business
the detention at the airport security checkpoint was brief, but because he was running late, it caused him to miss his flight
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Examples of detention in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Based on an evaluation rigged for indulgence, DJS considers options: send the child home with no consequences or with a home monitoring system; or detention.
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Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 3 Aug. 2024
Because the Taliban do not publicly acknowledge Mahmood’s detention, he is not allowed to call family or receive wellness checks from international diplomats.
—Beth Bailey, Fox News, 18 Aug. 2024
The detentions — urged by Maduro himself — is unprecedented, and puts Venezuela on pace to easily exceed those jailed during three previous crackdowns against Maduro’s opponents.
—Jorge Rueda and Regina Garcia Cano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2024
The 33-year-old ballerina's sentencing is the latest in a series of detentions of citizens of Western nations in Russia and comes against the backdrop of Russia's two-and-a-half-year-long war with Ukraine.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for detention 
Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 3 Aug. 2024
Because the Taliban do not publicly acknowledge Mahmood’s detention, he is not allowed to call family or receive wellness checks from international diplomats.
—Beth Bailey, Fox News, 18 Aug. 2024
The detentions — urged by Maduro himself — is unprecedented, and puts Venezuela on pace to easily exceed those jailed during three previous crackdowns against Maduro’s opponents.
—Jorge Rueda and Regina Garcia Cano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2024
The 33-year-old ballerina's sentencing is the latest in a series of detentions of citizens of Western nations in Russia and comes against the backdrop of Russia's two-and-a-half-year-long war with Ukraine.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for detention
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'detention.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Detention.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detention. Accessed 15 Sep. 2024.
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