confined
Americanadjective
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limited or restricted.
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unable to leave a place because of illness, imprisonment, etc.
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being in childbirth; being in parturition.
adjective
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enclosed or restricted; limited
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in childbed; undergoing childbirth
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of confined
Explanation
The adjective confined describes a space that is cramped or small and constricted. You probably don't see any claustrophobic vampires because if they were claustrophobic, they'd have a fear of confined spaces — like their coffins. The adjective confined describes being in captivity or not free to move about. If you do charity work, you could read books to older people confined to their homes. You could move your confined arms better if you just took off a few layers of clothes; you really don't need three sweaters, a vest, and a coat in 40 degree weather — even if you are from Arizona.
Vocabulary lists containing confined
Our Town
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"Efrén Divided" by Ernesto Cisneros, Chapters 1–5
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CTE Construction ("Core Curriculum: Introductory Craft Skills,") Vocabulary from Module One
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some grow only in the Andes, while others are confined to the Caribbean.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 12, 2026
If the enormous bets on artificial intelligence don’t pay off, the damage may not be confined to the AI industry.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 11, 2026
Six months later, questions about Alice Huang, her coziness with Jensen Huang and the significance of Nvidia’s China problem are no longer confined to a short seller’s research.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2026
Passfield said she did not believe the case would have gone to court had he confined his observation to the number of Nigerians living in Sunderland, even if that were a racist-held view.
From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026
Recognizing Bobby’s greater need for money than the capture of a title, however prestigious, Bisguier noted: “Evidently, his mature judgment is not solely confined to the chessboard.”
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.