imprison

verb

im-ˈpri-zᵊn How to pronounce imprison (audio)
Definition of imprisonnext
as in to jail
to put in or as if in prison in this society, we try to imprison criminals so that they can't do any more harm

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 imprison Pike, who was 18 at the time of the murder, has been imprisoned for more than 30 years and would have been the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. — Violet Jira, Washington Post, 4 Oct. 2026 Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, Erdogan’s main political rival, has been imprisoned since March of last year and is on trial on corruption charges. — ABC News, 28 Sep. 2026 The state has charged as much as $347 per day, meaning anyone who was imprisoned for a year in Connecticut racked up a tab of nearly $127,000. — Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Sep. 2026 Handal was later arrested in Turkey on a Haitian Interpol Red Notice and spent months imprisoned there. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for imprison
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imprison
  1. jail
  2. incarcerate
Verb
  • But unlike other Floridians of Cuban descent — including Secretary of State Marco Rubio — Valdes ended up defending Cuba’s socialist revolutionaries and officials who have killed, jailed, tortured, and censored numerous political enemies.
    — Hudson Crozier, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The hanged man, John Morgan, had been jailed, tried for murder, and convicted, before escaping jail, getting apprehended, and being executed—all in ten days, Mellinger said.
    — Oliver Whang, New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of jail
Verb
  • He was sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder and 25 years for conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and is currently incarcerated at Tennessee's Northwest Correctional Complex.
    — Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026
  • In some states, people who were convicted of a felony or are currently incarcerated are also restricted from voting.
    — TIME Staff, Time, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of incarcerate

Browse Nearby Words

imprints
imprison
imprisoned
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Cite this Entry

“Imprison.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imprison. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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