incarceration

noun

(ˌ)in-ˌkär-sə-ˈrā-shən How to pronounce incarceration (audio)
Definition of incarcerationnext
1
as in captivity
the act of confining or the state of being confined he was bored and frustrated by his incarceration in the quarantine

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imprisonment
the state of being held in lawful custody sentenced to six months of incarceration for dealing in narcotics

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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 incarceration Carter also will need therapy to deal with his extended incarceration, Hamilton said. — CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026 Between his 13-year incarceration and his decision to navigate the music industry as an independent artist, Kartel’s trajectory is very different from Shaggy’s. — Kyle Denis, Billboard, 28 Sep. 2026 Next month, audiences will get a candid look at Holmes in the 34 days before her incarceration in You Can See Everything, which sees Fielder and a film crew move in with Holmes and her husband. — Carly Thomas, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2026 Daniel Macallair is the executive director of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works to reduce society’s reliance on incarceration. — Paige Pfleger, ProPublica, 25 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for incarceration
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incarceration
  1. captivity
  2. imprisonment
  3. internment
  4. detention
  5. prison
  6. confinement
Noun
  • Rescue tells the story of Roro, a Yemeni mother of young children fighting to reunite her family after a Mediterranean rescue operation left her separated from her husband and held in captivity in Libya.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Even more surprisingly, the 24-year-old doe that lived in captivity in Kerr Wildlife Management Area actually birthed a fawn in her final year.
    — Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of captivity
Noun
  • The award is named after Justice Albie Sachs, a hero of the anti-apartheid movement who survived imprisonment, exile and an assassination attempt in the fight for equality in South Africa.
    — Lisa Lockwood, Footwear News, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s top-secret doc is 174 minutes and follows Theranos founder and fraudster Elizabeth Holmes in her final days of freedom and first few weeks of imprisonment.
    — Isabelle Farina, Variety, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of imprisonment
Noun
  • Even local landmarks can have a part in shameful history, with de Courcy noting that Memorial Auditorium was a staging area for the shipment of Japanese American residents to internment camps for during World War II.
    — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Aliens land in Johannesburg in 1982 seeking refuge, but instead they're crammed into an internment camp called District 9.
    — Grace Dean, Space.com, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of internment
Noun
  • Rights and media freedom groups have separately warned of police violence, arbitrary detentions, unauthorized surveillance and threats against journalists.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Kyle challenged the stop, the continued detention, and Alaniz’s use of the ALPR systems.
    — Rena Rowe, The Washington Examiner, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of detention
Noun
  • Ortega had additionally been sentenced, in September 2025, for in-prison possession and manufacture of a deadly weapon, according to the news release.
    — Michael McGough, Sacbee.com, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Vorcaro is currently in prison, accused of multi-million financial fraud.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of prison
Noun
  • Brown’s attorney, Ellen Comley, asked that he be sentenced to probation and home confinement.
    — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 1 Oct. 2026
  • The first year was to be served in home confinement without electronic monitoring.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of confinement

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incarcerating
incarceration
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Cite this Entry

“Incarceration.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incarceration. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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