confinement

[kuhn-fahyn-muhnt]

noun

1. the act of confining.

2. the state of being confined. confined.

3. the lying-in of a woman in childbed; accouchement; childbirth.

4. Military.,  incarceration in a guardhouse or prison while awaiting trial or as a punishment (arrest ).

confinement

/ kənˈfaɪnmənt /

noun

1. the act of confining or the state of being confined

2. the period from the onset of labour to the birth of a child

3. physics another name for containment

Other Word Forms

• nonconfinement noun
• postconfinement noun
• preconfinement noun
• self-confinement noun
• semiconfinement noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of confinement¹

1640–50; confine + -ment; compare French confinement

Example Sentences

Armani took away the restrictions and confinements of stiffer styles that went before him - making men feel sophisticated and women empowered in the workplace.

From BBC

She describes being strip searched, served "nearly inedible" food and how inmates who refuse to eat are threatened with "solitary confinement".

From BBC

We were taken to a prison run by Libyan intelligence, where we were held in solitary confinement, and accused of spying.

From BBC

They placed him in solitary confinement for three days as punishment, she said.

From Los Angeles Times

A political activist, Goonei was in solitary confinement in Iran's notorious Evin Prison when it was hit in a targeted attack by Israel on 23 June.

From BBC

Related Words

• custody 
• detention 
• incarceration 
• internment 
• jail 
• repression