detain
Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
detain/dɪˈteɪn/
▶verb
- 1 keep (someone) from proceeding by holding them back or making claims on their attention.
- 2 keep (someone) in official custody.
– derivatives
detainment noun.
detainment noun.
– origin ME (in the sense ‘be afflicted with sickness or infirmity’): from OFr. detenir, from a var. of L. detinere, from de- ‘away, aside’ + tenere ‘to hold’.
'detain' also found in these Oxford entries:
