incarceration
noun
in·car·cer·a·tion
(ˌ)in-ˌkär-sə-ˈrā-shən 
plural incarcerations
: confinement in a jail or prison : the act of imprisoning someone or the state of being imprisoned
Despite the drop in crime in past decades, rates of arrest and incarceration in New York City have not gone down.—
Robin Steinberg
Robin SteinbergTo this day, the Supreme Court has not overruled its infamous Korematsu opinion of 1944, which validated our mass incarceration in deference to national security.—George Takei
George TakeiSynonyms
Examples of incarceration in a Sentence
he was bored and frustrated by his incarceration in the quarantine
sentenced to six months of incarceration for dealing in narcotics
Recent Examples on the Web
His research is focused on the effects of incarceration and looking at ways to preserve the dignity of those who, like himself, have been impacted by the criminal justice system.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 10 Jan. 2025
Since the program's inception in 1996, less than 3 percent of RTA members have returned to prison—a sharp contrast to the roughly 40 percent that return to prison within three years—underscoring the potential of art in breaking cycles of incarceration.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 10 Jan. 2025
Hernández is the executive director of Freedom for Immigrants, a nonprofit group devoted to ending immigration incarceration.
—Laura Hernandez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2025
Three received probation; one was given probation and 30 days’ home detention; one got 70 days’ incarceration; one received four months’ incarceration plus two years’ probation; one got 20 months in prison; and one received 75 days in prison.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 6 Jan. 2025
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Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 10 Jan. 2025
Since the program's inception in 1996, less than 3 percent of RTA members have returned to prison—a sharp contrast to the roughly 40 percent that return to prison within three years—underscoring the potential of art in breaking cycles of incarceration.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 10 Jan. 2025
Hernández is the executive director of Freedom for Immigrants, a nonprofit group devoted to ending immigration incarceration.
—Laura Hernandez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2025
Three received probation; one was given probation and 30 days’ home detention; one got 70 days’ incarceration; one received four months’ incarceration plus two years’ probation; one got 20 months in prison; and one received 75 days in prison.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 6 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for incarceration
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Cite this Entry
“Incarceration.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incarceration. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
incarceration
noun
in·car·cer·a·tion
in-ˌkär-sə-ˈrā-shən
1
: a confining or state of being confined
2
: abnormal retention or confinement of a body part
specifically
: a constriction of the neck of a hernial sac so that the hernial contents become irreducible
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