imprison
Americanverb (used with object)
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imprisons,
present (3rd person singular)
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imprisoned,
past participle, past
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imprisoning
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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imprisonernoun
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imprisonmentnoun
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reimprisonmentnoun
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reimprisonverb (used with object)
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imprisonableadjective
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unimprisonableadjective
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unimprisonedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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imprisonsimple
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imprisonssimple
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have imprisonedperfect
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has imprisonedperfect
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am imprisoningprogressive
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are imprisoningprogressive
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is imprisoningprogressive
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have been imprisoningperfect progressive
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has been imprisoningperfect progressive
Past
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imprisonedsimple
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had imprisonedperfect
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was imprisoningprogressive
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were imprisoningprogressive
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had been imprisoningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of imprison
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English enprisonen, from Old French enprisoner, equivalent to en- en- 1 + prison prison + -er infinitive suffix
Explanation
To imprison is to hold someone in a prison or jail. It can also mean to confine them elsewhere. You might imprison a classmate in a locker, for example. Cops imprison suspects who can't make bail, and someone could be imprisoned for a long time if convicted of a serious crime. Government agencies like the CIA and FBI also imprison people. However, you don't need a prison to imprison someone: a kidnapper holding people captive in the basement has imprisoned them.
Vocabulary lists containing imprison
Schooled
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"The New Colossus"
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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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.
See Examples For:
Because the intelligence agency knows of Almásy’s affair with Katharine, they assume Geoffrey’s death is suspicious and imprison Almásy as he tries to get help.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
Federal prosecutors, seeking to imprison Rinderknecht for up to 45 years, say they will call ATF experts to refute that fireworks, a cigarette or power lines started the Palisades fire.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026
I patiently explained that neither law clerks nor justices get to imprison people sua sponte.
From Slate ● Apr. 3, 2026
Mitsotakis, who notes the fraud began before he came to power in 2019, has vowed to imprison the "thieves" responsible and to reclaim the funds.
From Barron's ● Apr. 3, 2026
Milo was dumfounded when he stepped down to the ground and found a contingent of armed M.P.’s waiting to imprison the German pilots and confiscate their planes.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
The camera is almost always static; the frame is frozen in a way that virtually imprisons the characters, suggesting that their blinkered belief systems similarly constrain their thoughts and direct their deeds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
Evasive and everywhere, the past imprisons Olivia as good old Gothic stories tend to wrap their tentacles around and ensnare us.
From Salon ● Jul. 16, 2022
“The notoriety of this case imprisons Mr. Haggis, and he can only be free to work again when he wins at trial,” his attorney, Seth Zuckerman, says in the motion, according to Variety.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2022
Still, in the United States, which imprisons more people than any other country, some of Norway’s methods have been adopted by Oregon and North Dakota.
From New York Times ● Nov. 12, 2019
Banning not only confines one physically, it imprisons one’s spirit.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
That’s a start to not being imprisoned by your phone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
They have been imprisoned at the Baker County Detention Center and denied bail ever since.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
To be eligible, a person has to have been imprisoned as a result of a conviction that was later vacated by a court.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
Chávez had been imprisoned in June 2023 over her alleged role in Castillo's plan to dissolve congress.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
She was imprisoned because she owed a $705 fine.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Buddha steps in, imprisoning Monkey under a mountain and forcing him to study sutras for 500 years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 1, 2025
Retired tech titans and social media luminaries can no more control the development of AI by banning it than the Catholic Church could undo the fact that Earth revolves around the sun by imprisoning Galileo.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2025
"Excuse me, that's incorrect. Habeas corpus is the legal principle that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people," Hassan said.
From Salon ● May 20, 2025
Reacting to Sentencing Council's announcement, Janey Starling, co-director of feminist campaign group Level Up, said the changes are a "huge milestone" in the campaign to end imprisoning pregnant women and mothers.
From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2025
Now, there are no laws against imprisoning apostrophes and making them look daft.
From "Eats, Shoots & Leaves" by Author
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.
