protective custody
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of protective custody
First recorded in 1935–40
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.
He narrowly escaped and was placed under protective custody.
From BBC ● May 12, 2026
Now he’d be sent to the hospital, stitched up, placed in protective custody, and sent to another prison.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2025
The ministry has since come under fire because officials questioned Jossimar Cabrera at the airport in Lima and took the children into protective custody, but didn’t detain him, according to several Peruvian media sources.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2025
Mr De Wet will be taken into protective custody until the end of the trial.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2025
Should they take me into something called "protective custody"? If they can't locate next of kin, can they turn me over to a family friend?
From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan
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.
