confine

Pronunciation

verb

• enPR: kənfīnʹ, IPA ^(key): /kənˈfaɪn/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

noun

• (UK) IPA ^(key): /ˈkɒnfaɪn/
• (US) enPR: känʹfīn, IPA ^(key): /ˈkɑnfaɪn/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

Verb

Plain form confine

Third-person singular confines

Past tense confined

Past participle confined

Present participle confining

1. (transitive) If you confine someone or something to a particular topic or activity, you do not let them do other topics or activities.

   Humphrey did not confine his activities just to the factory.

   Her relatively short life was largely confined to Copenhagen.

2. (transitive) If you confine somebody or something, you put them in a place that they cannot leave.

   For the first twenty years he was confined in prison-like conditions.

   The disease was confined to a small area within the Camperdown district.

Synonyms

• limit

Antonyms

• free

Related words

• confinement