Detention
/dɪˈtɛnʃən/noun
The act of keeping someone in custody or delaying them; also, a period of being kept after school as punishment.
Did you know?Detention comes from Latin *detinere*, literally “to hold back,” from *de-* (“away, completely”) + *tenere* (“to hold”), the same root that gave us words tied to holding, grasping, and keeping control.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ten-
“to stretch, hold”
Latin
Latin
tenere
“to hold, keep, possess”
Latin
Latin
detinere
“to hold back, detain, delay”
Old French
Old French
detencion
“detention, imprisonment, delay”
Middle English
English
detencioun
“the act of detaining or delaying”
Modern English
English
detention
“the act of keeping someone in custody or delaying them”