1
as in delay
an instance or period of being prevented from going about one's business
the returning vacationers' detainment at the border only lasted a few minutes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in detention
the state of being held in lawful custody
she'll be kept in detainment until the trial if she can't post bail
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detainment
Noun
-
Although drivers are fully routed around the K Street blocks of the market, drivers are still allowed to proceed east through the intersection of J and 20th streets, where the volume of pedestrians using the crosswalks on J leads to delays for those in cars.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacramento Bee,
2 Mar. 2025 -
The loss of institutional knowledge and potential disruption to services such as delays in veterans’ benefits or Social Security processing could undermine public trust in government efficiency.—
Jack Kelly,
Forbes,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Gledhill allegedly told the informant he was buried somewhere north of their Cottonwood Heights home, per the detention hearing.—
Toria Sheffield,
People.com,
2 Mar. 2025
-
In our constitutional system, the president does not have the legal authority to render individuals to detention outside the United States, particularly to the notorious island prison of Guantánamo, a site of lawlessness and brutality.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Businesses are facing five to eight-year wait times to connect to Europe’s ageing and strained electricity grids, experts told CNBC, as the emergence of new areas of demand drives an unprecedented rise in permit requests for power.—
April Roach,
CNBC,
5 Mar. 2025
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The new approval process is creating lengthy wait times for agencies to onboard new hires, causing fears that those employees will go unpaid, their work will go undone, and that their personal information might be compromised.—
Quil Lawrence,
NPR,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
In many cases, being in the country without authorization is a civil offense and would typically be punishable by removal instead of incarceration.—
Armando Garcia,
ABC News,
26 Feb. 2025
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This is particularly true of Black people with disabilities, as they are disproportionately pushed out of school, disciplined more harshly, targeted for incarceration and marginalized in disability representation and research.—
Lauren Shallish,
The Conversation,
24 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Detainment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detainment. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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