imprison

American  

[im-priz-uhn] / ɪmˈprɪz ən /

verb (used with object)

1. to confine in or as if in a prison.

   Synonyms:

   restrain , jail , incarcerate

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imprison British  

/ ɪmˈprɪzən /

verb

1. (tr) to confine in or as if in prison

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Other Word Forms

• imprisonable adjective
• imprisoner noun
• imprisonment noun
• reimprison verb (used with object)
• reimprisonment noun
• unimprisonable adjective
• unimprisoned adjective

Etymology

Origin of imprison

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English enprisonen, from Old French enprisoner, equivalent to en- en- ¹ + prison prison + -er infinitive suffix

Example Sentences

Buddha steps in, imprisoning Monkey under a mountain and forcing him to study sutras for 500 years.

From Los Angeles Times

He was imprisoned for almost 15 years, not once petitioning his old college friend for mercy.

From The Wall Street Journal

Nor was the State Department’s office for unjustly imprisoned Americans.

From The Wall Street Journal

After surviving World War II, Zawacka was imprisoned and tortured by the Communists in the 1950s, but she lived to see a free Poland.

From The Wall Street Journal

Western missionaries were expelled; churches, mosques and temples were brought under state control or shuttered; and clergy who refused to join government-sanctioned “patriotic associations” were imprisoned.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• apprehend
• commit
• detain
• hold
• incarcerate
• jail
• lock up
• remand