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- DictionaryDe·tain/dəˈtān/
verb
- 1. keep (someone) from proceeding; hold back: "she made to open the door, but he detained her"
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detain somebody (formal) to delay somebody or prevent them from going somewhere. I'm sorry—he'll be late; he's been detained at a meeting. The minister was unavoidably detained in Lisbon on affairs of state. Definition of detain verb in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
verb (used with object) to keep from proceeding; keep waiting; delay. Synonyms: check, stay, stop, hinder, slow, retard. to keep under restraint or in custody. Obsolete. to keep back or withhold, as from a person. detain. / ˌdiːteɪˈniː; dɪˈteɪn / verb. to delay; hold back; stop. to confine or hold in custody; restrain. archaic.
Definition of detain verb in Oxford Advanced American Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
to keep someone somewhere and not allow them to leave, especially in order to ask them about a crime: Three men were detained by police for questioning. (Definition of detain from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) Translations of detain. in Chinese (Traditional) 使留下, 拘留，扣押, （短時間地）耽擱，拖延… See more.
5 days ago · 1. transitive verb. When people such as the police detain someone, they keep them in a place under their control. [formal] Police have detained two suspects in connection with the attack. Synonyms: hold, arrest, confine, restrain More Synonyms of detain. 2. transitive verb.
detain. verb [ T ] us uk / dɪˈteɪn/. to keep someone somewhere and not allow them to leave, especially in order to ask them about a crime: Three men were detained by police for questioning. (Definition of detain from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)
de•tain (di tān′), v.t. to keep from proceeding; keep waiting; delay. to keep under restraint or in custody. [Obs.]to keep back or withhold, as from a person. Vulgar Latin * dētenīre, for Latin dētinēre, equivalent. to dē-de - + -tinēre, combining form of tenēre to hold. Anglo-French, Old French detenir.
