Detain — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

deprive of freedom; take into confinement

stop or halt

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/dɹˈɪftmən/

🇬🇧British English

/dɪtˈeɪn/

🇮🇳Indian English

/dɪtˈeɪn/

2 syllables Say it as /dɹˈɪftmən/.

Examples

Please stay the bloodshed!
Traffic was delayed by the bad weather
she delayed the work that she didn't want to perform

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

delay hold up confine stay

Antonyms

rush free

Parts of Speech

verb	deprive of freedom; take into confinement
verb	stop or halt “Please stay the bloodshed!”
verb	cause to be slowed down or delayed “Traffic was delayed by the bad weather”

Word Forms

confinement	noun	the act of restraining of a person's liberty by confining them
detention	noun	a state of being confined (usually for a short time)
detainee	noun	some held in custody
stay	noun	a judicial order forbidding some action until an event occurs or the order is lifted
delay	noun	the act of delaying; inactivity resulting in something being put off until a later time
holdup	noun	the act of delaying; inactivity resulting in something being put off until a later time

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

festhalten

der Freiheit beraubt; in Gewahrsam nehmen

🇫🇷French

détenir

priver de liberté; mettre en confinement

🇪🇸Spanish

detener

privar de libertad; llevar al confinamiento

🇮🇹Italian

trattenere

privare della libertà; portare in confino

🇳🇱Dutch

vasthouden

vrijheid ontnemen; in gevangenschap nemen

🇵🇹Portuguese

deter

privar de liberdade; levar para o confinamento

🇷🇺Russian

задерживать

лишить свободы; взять под стражу

India

🇮🇳Hindi

गिरफ्तारी

स्वतंत्रता से वंचित; कारावास में ले जाओ

🇧🇩Bengali

আটক

স্বাধীনতা থেকে বঞ্চিত; বন্দী করা

🇮🇳Tamil

தடுத்து வைக்க

சுதந்திரத்தை பறிக்கும்; சிறையில் அடைக்க

🇮🇳Telugu

నిర్బంధించండి

స్వేచ్ఛను హరించడం; నిర్బంధంలోకి తీసుకోండి

🇮🇳Marathi

ताब्यात घेणे

स्वातंत्र्यापासून वंचित; बंदिवासात घेणे

🇮🇳Gujarati

અટકાયતમાં

સ્વતંત્રતા વંચિત; કેદમાં લો

🇮🇳Kannada

ಬಂಧಿಸಿ

ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯವನ್ನು ಕಸಿದುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ; ಬಂಧನಕ್ಕೆ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

തടങ്കലിൽ വയ്ക്കുക

സ്വാതന്ത്ര്യം നഷ്ടപ്പെടുത്തുക; തടവിൽ എടുക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਨਜ਼ਰਬੰਦ

ਆਜ਼ਾਦੀ ਤੋਂ ਵਾਂਝੇ; ਕੈਦ ਵਿੱਚ ਲੈ

🇵🇰Urdu

حراست میں

آزادی سے محروم؛ قید میں لے لو

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

扣留

剥夺自由；收监

🇯🇵Japanese

拘留する

自由を奪う。監禁する

🇰🇷Korean

억류

자유를 박탈하다; 감금하다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

giam

tước đoạt tự do; đưa vào giam giữ

🇹🇭Thai

กักขัง

ลิดรอนเสรีภาพ; เข้าคุก

🇮🇩Indonesian

menahan

merampas kebebasan; bawa ke dalam kurungan

🇵🇭Filipino

pigilan

pagkaitan ng kalayaan; dalhin sa pagkakulong

🇲🇾Malay

menahan

melucutkan kebebasan; masuk ke dalam kurungan

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

احتجاز

الحرمان من الحرية؛ تأخذ في الحبس

🇮🇷Persian

بازداشت

سلب آزادی؛ را در حصر

🇹🇷Turkish

gözaltına almak

özgürlükten mahrum etmek; hapsedilmek

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְעַכֵּב

שלילת חירות; לקחת למעצר

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'detain'?

The primary meaning of 'detain' is 'deprive of freedom; take into confinement'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'detain' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'detain' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'detain' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'detain' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'detain' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'detain' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'detain' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'detain' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'detain' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'detain' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted