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 TakeiExamples 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
Children enter foster care for reasons beyond their control – often because of abuse, neglect, or the ripple effects of addiction, incarceration, or untreated mental health conditions in their homes.
—Laura Rivera, Denver Post, 23 Oct. 2025
Research shows that incarcerated students who enroll in postsecondary-education programs are 48% less likely to return to prison than those who don’t participate, according to the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit that opposes mass incarceration.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 23 Oct. 2025
Many lives have been ravaged by drug addiction and incarceration.
—Grace Byron, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2025
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told Europe 1 radio that two police officers who are part of the security detail protecting former presidents will be stationed permanently in neighboring cells throughout Sarkozy's incarceration.
—Reuters, NBC news, 22 Oct. 2025
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Laura Rivera, Denver Post, 23 Oct. 2025
Research shows that incarcerated students who enroll in postsecondary-education programs are 48% less likely to return to prison than those who don’t participate, according to the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit that opposes mass incarceration.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 23 Oct. 2025
Many lives have been ravaged by drug addiction and incarceration.
—Grace Byron, New Yorker, 22 Oct. 2025
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told Europe 1 radio that two police officers who are part of the security detail protecting former presidents will be stationed permanently in neighboring cells throughout Sarkozy's incarceration.
—Reuters, NBC news, 22 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for incarceration
Cite this Entry
“Incarceration.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incarceration. Accessed 30 Oct. 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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