detention center
Americannoun
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detention centers
plural
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a facility maintained by the civil authorities for persons charged with a crime, immigrants awaiting deportation rulings, or sometimes witnesses before a trial.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of detention center
First recorded in 1945–50
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.
In California, a court-appointed medical monitor issued a report last month finding that the state’s largest immigrant detention center repeatedly has delayed assessments, treatment and administration of medication for detainees.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
He is being held without bond at the county’s adult detention center.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The current court fight centers on an immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas, run by the private prison company CoreCivic, where the vast majority of children and families in immigration custody are held.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The strike led to significant protests outside the Newark, New Jersey, detention center, and high-profile clashes between protesters and the guards there as well as a frenzy of attention from the national press.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
Beside her walked the guard who had arrived to escort Cole back to the detention center.
From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen
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.
