custody
Americannoun
plural
custodies-
keeping; guardianship; care.
- Synonyms:
- watch, charge, safekeeping
-
the keeping or charge of officers of the law.
The car was held in the custody of the police.
-
imprisonment; legal restraint.
He was taken into custody.
-
Also called child custody. Law. the right of determining the residence, protection, care, and education of a minor child or children, especially in a divorce or separation.
noun
-
the act of keeping safe or guarding, esp the right of guardianship of a minor
-
the state of being held by the police; arrest (esp in the phrases in custody, take into custody )
Related Words
Custody, keeping, possession imply a guardianship or care for something. Custody denotes a strict keeping, as by a formally authorized and responsible guardian or keeper: in the custody of the sheriff. Keeping denotes having in one's care or charge, as for guarding or preservation: I left the package in my mother's keeping. Possession means holding, ownership, or mastery: Leave it in possession of its owner.
Other Word Forms
- custodial adjective
Etymology
Origin of custody
1400–50; late Middle English custodye < Latin custōdia “a watching, watchman,” equivalent to custōd- (stem of custōs ) “keeper” + -ia -y 3
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.
Sharp, who remains in custody without bail, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 5.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026
Barton, of Widnes, was remanded into custody, and faces a seven-day trail starting 1 September.
From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026
But by 1991, Cynthia and Gonzalez were locked in a contentious custody dispute for their daughter, recalled another friend, Michelle Feigenbaum, who met Cynthia on the local entertainment circuit.
From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026
He was thrown from the vehicle following the incident and was taken to hospital for treatment where he was placed in police custody.
From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026
“Theoretically, the state of Maryland has custody until they’re twenty-one years old.”
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
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.
