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.
As people move deeper and deeper into ecosystems and territories where few, if any, had lived before, they risk interacting with pathogens that were previously confined.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
A high pressure ridge should move across on Friday and Saturday, giving mostly dry weather with any showers largely confined to the far western and northern UK.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
The new case is the latest proof that AI loss-of-control scenarios, once confined to science fiction and AI-safety experiments, are now a real-world issue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Earlier research modeled what would happen to deer-vehicle collisions if mountain lions recolonized the eastern United States, where they once roamed before hunting and habitat destruction left them largely confined to the West.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
In the confined space of the snake’s den there was no room to wield the fabled blade.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Definitions 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.
