1
as in to seize
to take or keep under one's control by authority of law
the inept robber was promptly arrested by the off-duty policeman he had tried to hold up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to stop
to bring (something) to a standstill
cryogenics is based on the idea that extreme cold can almost arrest molecular motion
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to fascinate
to hold the attention of as if by a spell
the sight of the daredevil walking a tightrope between high-rises arrested area pedestrians and motorists alike
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in arrestment
the act of taking into one's control by authority of law
there have been only two arrests for driving while intoxicated in the county in the last six months
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cessation
the stopping of a process or activity
"hemostasis" is the technical term for arrest of bleeding
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of arrest
Charna Flam, People.com, 24 May 2025
Authorities arrested Trevon Williams on Friday in connection with the inmates’ escape.
—Ryan Young, CNN Money, 24 May 2025
Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 25 May 2025
The incident allegedly occurred on the evening of Wednesday, May 21, at a Checkers drive-thru in Kissimmee, Fla., after a customer, who police identified as Wesley Robertson, began complaining about his order, per an arrest affidavit viewed by PEOPLE.
—Bailey Richards, People.com, 25 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for arrest
Verb
Police in Germany arrested a 39-year-old German woman, who is believed to have committed the crime alone.
—Charna Flam, People.com, 24 May 2025
Authorities arrested Trevon Williams on Friday in connection with the inmates’ escape.
—Ryan Young, CNN Money, 24 May 2025
Noun
The arrest of Jim Devoe, 30, came two years after he was arrested and charged with physically abusing his 5-year-old son.
—Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 25 May 2025
The incident allegedly occurred on the evening of Wednesday, May 21, at a Checkers drive-thru in Kissimmee, Fla., after a customer, who police identified as Wesley Robertson, began complaining about his order, per an arrest affidavit viewed by PEOPLE.
—Bailey Richards, People.com, 25 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for arrest
Recent Examples of Synonyms for arrest
Verb
-
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering Gaza in March, saying Hamas was seizing supplies meant for civilians - a charge the group denies.—
Nidal al-Mughrabi,
USA Today,
23 May 2025
-
Officials with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms conducted a search at Ross’ home in Oklahoma and seized materials that were used to build the explosive devices, police said.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
23 May 2025
Verb
-
The chase reportedly ended when Buckley wrecked near the intersection of Watts and McAlister streets, an area of mostly forest about 1 1/2 miles southeast of where Buckley was first stopped.—
Grant Lancaster,
Arkansas Online,
25 May 2025
-
The former analyst ends up becoming a critical new addition to the gang in their mission to stop the Entity from destroying the world.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
24 May 2025
Verb
-
The bear — maybe fascinated by flying soot or maybe out of pure cussedness — had taken a fiendish delight in batting lengths of stovepipe around.—
Ted Updike,
Outdoor Life,
22 May 2025
-
Written by Washington Post journalists Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong, the first-ever inside account of the Supreme Court fascinated her.—
Brian Hamilton,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
Noun
-
Those cessations in breathing are what constitutes apnea.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
19 May 2025
-
In multiple rounds of diplomacy in 2014 and 2015, after Russia’s takeover of Crimea and incursion into Ukraine’s Donbas region, France and Germany expended more effort on a cosmetic cessation of hostilities than on solving the underlying problems of regional security.—
Liana Fix,
Foreign Affairs,
1 May 2025
Verb
-
The Sun newspaper reports that, back in 2006, Pike – who starred as Amy Dunne in Gone Girl alongside Ben Affleck and also appeared in Bond film Die Another Day – was speaking to her mother on the phone when she was violently apprehended by a thief on a bicycle.—
Caroline Frost,
Deadline,
25 May 2025
-
Like many of those apprehended this week, Fonseca Solorzano arrived in the United States from Honduras via CPB One, an application set up during the Biden administration that provided asylum seekers a way to enter the country legally after going through a background check.—
Melissa Gomez,
Los Angeles Times,
24 May 2025
Verb
-
The ruling halted a 30% tariff on China, a 25% tariff on certain goods from Mexico and Canada, and 10% baseline tariffs on most of the rest of the world, but did not affect import taxes on steel, aluminum, or automakers, which Trump levied under a different law.—
Solcyré Burga,
Time,
29 May 2025
-
The administration could ask the Supreme Court to halt the ruling as early as Friday.—
Alex Harring,Sawdah Bhaimiya,
CNBC,
29 May 2025
Verb
-
The sequel to Practical Magic is aiming to enchant viewers in the fall of 2026.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
6 May 2025
-
She was enchanted by the centuries-old wood plank floors, scarred and slightly sloped.—
Leilani Marie Labong,
Architectural Digest,
5 May 2025
Noun
-
When Pride Month began The monthlong global celebration began with Gay Pride Week in late June 1970, a year after the violent police raid at New York’s Stonewall Inn, a gay bar.—
Geoff Mulvihill,
Chicago Tribune,
1 June 2025
-
Earlier in the year, CBP agents conducted a three-day raid in rural parts of Kern County targeting day laborers and Latino farmworkers.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
31 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Arrest.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/arrest. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share