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
Trump administration brings back family detention of migrants.
—
Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 14 Mar. 2025
Policies such as Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen, its blockade of Qatar, the detention of Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri and the conversion of the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh into a makeshift prison all fed an image of the young prince as an impulsive decision-maker.
—Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, The Conversation, 14 Mar. 2025
Trump has personally celebrated the ICE detention of the student protest leader, Mahmoud Khalil.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 14 Mar. 2025
Sometimes things are straightforward: the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia graduate who was involved in the pro-Palestine protests on the school’s campus, is an affront to freedom of speech.
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 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.
Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 14 Mar. 2025
Policies such as Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen, its blockade of Qatar, the detention of Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri and the conversion of the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh into a makeshift prison all fed an image of the young prince as an impulsive decision-maker.
—Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, The Conversation, 14 Mar. 2025
Trump has personally celebrated the ICE detention of the student protest leader, Mahmoud Khalil.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 14 Mar. 2025
Sometimes things are straightforward: the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia graduate who was involved in the pro-Palestine protests on the school’s campus, is an affront to freedom of speech.
—Jay Caspian Kang, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 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 23 Mar. 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