house arrest


noun

confinement of an arrested person to his or her residence or to a public place, as a hospital, instead of in a jail: He was under house arrest until the day of his trial.

Origin of house arrest

First recorded in 1935–40

Example sentences from the Web for house arrest

British Dictionary definitions for house arrest

house arrest

noun

confinement to one's own home

Cultural definitions for house arrest

house arrest

Forcible detention in one's house rather than in a prison. House arrest is used by some nations as a way to silence political dissent without the elaborate trials and criminal proceedings that would bring bad publicity.