detention centre

British

noun

a place where persons (typically asylum seekers, illegal immigrants, or people awaiting trial) may be detained for short periods by order of a court

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

See Examples For:

detention centre

A few days before the verdict he was moved to Ila prison and detention centre outside Oslo.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

After being caught on the metro, the former bank worker was held for three days in a detention centre without a shower or change of clothes.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

The ongoing costs of building and running the new detention centre have not been revealed by the French government.

From BBC ● May 27, 2026

France's Ministry of the Interior was granted a permit to build a detention centre with the capacity to hold 140 people in July last year.

From BBC ● May 27, 2026

In August, he was arrested again in Baltimore during an immigration meeting and held in a detention centre until another judge barred the move and ordered his release.

From BBC ● May 22, 2026

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023