imprison

[im-priz-uhn]

verb (used with object)

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

   Synonyms: restrain, jail, incarcerate

imprison

/ ɪmˈprɪzən /

verb

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

Other Word Forms

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of imprison¹

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

Example Sentences

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

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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.

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Safely imprisoned in the girl’s arms, the cat stared at Lord Fredrick.

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The releases could, in theory, also include files pertaining to imprisoned Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as people - including government officials - mentioned in the case.

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When we show her the video of Mendoza, she says he "should have been imprisoned from the moment the incident happened, it should have been impossible for him to see the light of day".

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Related Words

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