confine


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Related to confine: epitomize, confined area

con·fine

 (kən-fīn′)
tr.v. con·fined, con·fin·ing, con·fines
1. To keep within bounds; restrict: Please confine your remarks to the issues at hand. See Synonyms at limit.
2. To shut or keep in, especially to imprison.
3. To restrict in movement: The sick child was confined to bed.

[French confiner, from Old French, from confins, boundaries; see confines.]

con·fin′a·ble, con·fine′a·ble adj.
con·fin′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

confine

vb (tr)
1. to keep or close within bounds; limit; restrict
2. to keep shut in; restrict the free movement of: arthritis confined him to bed.
n
(often plural) a limit; boundary
[C16: from Medieval Latin confīnāre from Latin confīnis adjacent, from fīnis end, boundary]
conˈfinable, conˈfineable adj
ˈconfineless adj
conˈfiner n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

con•fine

(kənˈfaɪn for 1, 2, 5, 6; ˈkɒn faɪn for 3, 4 )

v. -fined, -fin•ing,
n. v.t.
1. to enclose within bounds; limit or restrict: Confine your remarks to the subject at hand.
2. to shut or keep in; prevent from leaving a place because of imprisonment, illness, discipline, etc.
n.
3. Usu., confines. a boundary or bound; limit; border.
4. Often, confines. region; territory.
5. Archaic. confinement.
6. Obs. a place of confinement; prison.
[1350–1400; (n.) Middle English < Middle French confins, confines < Medieval Latin confīnia, pl. of Latin confīnis boundary (see con-, fine2); (v.) < Middle French confiner, v. derivative of confins < Latin]
con•fin′a•ble, con•fine′a•ble, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

confine


Past participle: confined
Gerund: confining

Imperative
confine
confine
Present
I confine
you confine
he/she/it confines
we confine
you confine
they confine
Preterite
I confined
you confined
he/she/it confined
we confined
you confined
they confined
Present Continuous
I am confining
you are confining
he/she/it is confining
we are confining
you are confining
they are confining
Present Perfect
I have confined
you have confined
he/she/it has confined
we have confined
you have confined
they have confined
Past Continuous
I was confining
you were confining
he/she/it was confining
we were confining
you were confining
they were confining
Past Perfect
I had confined
you had confined
he/she/it had confined
we had confined
you had confined
they had confined
Future
I will confine
you will confine
he/she/it will confine
we will confine
you will confine
they will confine
Future Perfect
I will have confined
you will have confined
he/she/it will have confined
we will have confined
you will have confined
they will have confined
Future Continuous
I will be confining
you will be confining
he/she/it will be confining
we will be confining
you will be confining
they will be confining
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been confining
you have been confining
he/she/it has been confining
we have been confining
you have been confining
they have been confining
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been confining
you will have been confining
he/she/it will have been confining
we will have been confining
you will have been confining
they will have been confining
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been confining
you had been confining
he/she/it had been confining
we had been confining
you had been confining
they had been confining
Conditional
I would confine
you would confine
he/she/it would confine
we would confine
you would confine
they would confine
Past Conditional
I would have confined
you would have confined
he/she/it would have confined
we would have confined
you would have confined
they would have confined
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Verb1.confine - place limits on (extent or access)confine - place limits on (extent or access); "restrict the use of this parking lot"; "limit the time you can spend with your friends"
tighten, reduce - narrow or limit; "reduce the influx of foreigners"
tie - limit or restrict to; "I am tied to UNIX"; "These big jets are tied to large airports"
gate - restrict (school boys') movement to the dormitory or campus as a means of punishment
draw a line, draw the line - reasonably object (to) or set a limit (on); "I draw the line when it comes to lending money to friends!"
mark off, mark out - set boundaries to and delimit; "mark out the territory"
harness, rein, rule - keep in check; "rule one's temper"
baffle, regulate - check the emission of (sound)
hamper, cramp, halter, strangle - prevent the progress or free movement of; "He was hampered in his efforts by the bad weather"; "the imperialist nation wanted to strangle the free trade between the two small countries"
tighten up, constrain, stiffen, tighten - restrict; "Tighten the rules"; "stiffen the regulations"
clamp down, crack down - repress or suppress (something regarded as undesirable); "The police clamped down on illegal drugs"
inhibit - limit the range or extent of; "Contact between the young was inhibited by strict social customs"
curb, hold in, control, moderate, contain, check, hold - lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits; "moderate your alcohol intake"; "hold your tongue"; "hold your temper"; "control your anger"
2.confine - restrict or confine, "I limit you to two visits to the pub a day"
hold down - restrain; "please hold down the noise so that the neighbors can sleep"
keep down, number - place a limit on the number of
cap - restrict the number or amount of; "We had to cap the number of people we can accept into our club"
curtail, restrict, curb, cut back - place restrictions on; "curtail drinking in school"
minify, decrease, lessen - make smaller; "He decreased his staff"
delimitate, demarcate, delimit - set, mark, or draw the boundaries of something
content - satisfy in a limited way; "He contented himself with one glass of beer per day"
ration - restrict the consumption of a relatively scarce commodity, as during war; "Bread was rationed during the siege of the city"
3.confine - prevent from leaving or from being removed
cabin - confine to a small space, such as a cabin
closet - confine to a small space, as for intensive work
coop in, coop up - confine in or as if in a coop; "she coops herself up in the library all day"
lock away, put away, shut away, shut up, lock in, lock up, lock - place in a place where something cannot be removed or someone cannot escape; "The parents locked her daughter up for the weekend"; "She locked her jewels in the safe"
lock in, seal in - close with or as if with a tight seal; "This vacuum pack locks in the flavor!"
keep back, restrain, hold back, keep - keep under control; keep in check; "suppress a smile"; "Keep your temper"; "keep your cool"
4.confine - close in; darkness enclosed him"
contain, bear, carry, hold - contain or hold; have within; "The jar carries wine"; "The canteen holds fresh water"; "This can contains water"
border, bound - form the boundary of; be contiguous to
embank - enclose with banks, as for support or protection; "The river was embanked with a dyke"
rail in, rail - enclose with rails; "rail in the old graves"
box in, box up - enclose or confine as if in a box
frame - enclose in a frame, as of a picture
5.confine - deprive of freedom; take into confinement
keep - hold and prevent from leaving; "The student was kept after school"
straiten - squeeze together
gaol, immure, imprison, incarcerate, jail, jug, put behind bars, remand, lag, put away - lock up or confine, in or as in a jail; "The suspects were imprisoned without trial"; "the murderer was incarcerated for the rest of his life"
intern - deprive of freedom; "During WW II, Japanese were interned in camps in the West"
bind over - order a defendant to be placed in custody pending the outcome of a proceedings against him or her; "The defendant was bound over for trial"
imprison - confine as if in a prison; "His daughters are virtually imprisoned in their own house; he does not let them go out without a chaperone"
cage, cage in - confine in a cage; "The animal was caged"
trap, pin down - place in a confining or embarrassing position; "He was trapped in a difficult situation"
keep in - cause to stay indoors
free, loose, unloose, unloosen, release, liberate - grant freedom to; free from confinement
6.confine - to close within bounds, limit or hold back from movement; "This holds the local until the express passengers change trains"; "About a dozen animals were held inside the stockade"; "The illegal immigrants were held at a detention center"; "The terrorists held the journalists for ransom"
disable, disenable, incapacitate - make unable to perform a certain action; "disable this command on your computer"
tie down, tie up, truss, bind - secure with or as if with ropes; "tie down the prisoners"; "tie up the old newspapers and bring them to the recycling shed"
fetter, shackle - restrain with fetters
enchain - restrain or bind with chains
pinion, shackle - bind the arms of
impound, pound - place or shut up in a pound; "pound the cows so they don't stray"
pound up, pound - shut up or confine in any enclosure or within any bounds or limits; "The prisoners are safely pounded"
pen up, fold - confine in a fold, like sheep
ground - confine or restrict to the ground; "After the accident, they grounded the plane and the pilot"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

confine

verb
1. imprison, enclose, shut up, intern, incarcerate, circumscribe, hem in, immure, keep, cage He has been confined to his barracks.
2. restrict, limit She had largely confined her activities to the world of big business.
plural noun
1. limits, bounds, boundaries, compass, precincts, circumference, edge, pale The movie is set entirely within the confines of the abandoned factory.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

confine

verb
1. To place a limit on:
2. To shut in with or as if with bars:
3. To enclose so as to hinder or prohibit escape:
4. To put in jail:
noun
1. A demarcation point or boundary beyond which something does not extend or occur.Used in plural:
bound (often used in plural), end, limit.
2. The boundary surrounding a certain area.Used in plural:
bound (used in plural), limit (used in plural), precinct (often used in plural).
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يَحْبِس، يَحْجِزيَحْصُر
omezituvěznitzavřít
begrænseindespærre
einskorîa, takmarkaloka inni, fangelsa
ankštasapribotiįkalinimasįkalintilokalizuoti
ierobežotieslodzīt
hapsetmekkapatmaksınırlı tutmak

confine

[kənˈfaɪn] VT
1. (= imprison) → encerrar (in, to en) to be confined to bedtener que guardar cama
to be confined to one's roomno poder dejar su cuarto
2. (= limit) → limitar
to confine o.s. to doing sthlimitarse a hacer algo
please confine yourself to the factspor favor, limítese a los hechos
the damage is confined to this partel daño afecta sólo a esta parte
this bird is confined to Spainesta ave existe únicamente en España
3. (Med) (o.f.) to be confined [woman] → estar de parto
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

confine

[kənˈfaɪn] vt
(= limit) → limiter
The neighbouring countries are taking steps to confine the conflict → Les pays voisins prennent des mesures visant à limiter l'ampleur du conflit.
to be confined to (= only found among) → se limiter à
to confine o.s. to doing sth → se contenter de faire qch, se limiter à faire qch
(= shut away) → confiner, enfermer
to confine sb to sth → confiner qn à qch, confiner qn dans qch
She is confined to her bed
BUT Elle est obligée de garder le lit.
to be confined to a wheelchair → être cloué(e) sur une chaise roulante
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

confine

vt
(= keep in) person, animal(ein)sperren; floodeindämmen; to be confined to the housenicht aus dem Haus können; to be confined to barracks/one’s roomKasernen-/Stubenarrest mhaben
(= limit) remarksbeschränken (→ to auf +acc); to confine oneself to doing somethingsich darauf beschränken, etw zu tun; the damage was confined to …der Schaden beschränkte or erstreckte sich nur auf (+acc); he finds the job too confininger fühlt sich in dem Job beschränkt or eingeengt; lions are confined to AfricaLöwen gibt es nur in Afrika
(dated pass: in childbirth) to be confinedniederkommen (old)
pl confines (of space, thing etc)Grenzen pl; (of marriage)Fesseln pl; (of system)enge Grenzen pl
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

confine

[kənˈfaɪn] vt
a. (imprison, shut up) → rinchiudere
confined to barracks → consegnato/a (in caserma)
confined to bed → costretto/a a letto
b. (limit) → limitare
to confine o.s. to doing sth → limitarsi a fare qc
see also confines
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

confine

(kənˈfain) verb
1. to keep within limits; to stop from spreading. They succeeded in confining the fire to a small area.
2. to shut up or imprison. The prince was confined in the castle for three years.
conˈfined adjective
1. (with to) kept in or shut up in. confined to bed with a cold.
2. narrow, small. a confined space.
conˈfinement noun
1. state of being shut up or imprisoned. solitary confinement.
2. (the time of) the birth of a child. her third confinement.
ˈconfines (ˈkon-) noun plural
limits or boundaries. within the confines of the city.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

confine

vt. recluir, internar, confinar;
to ___ in bed___ en la cama.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
References in classic literature ?
I do not pretend to plead the immunities of my order so highly as this; but neither will I allow that the author of a modern antique romance is obliged to confine himself to the introduction of those manners only which can be proved to have absolutely existed in the times he is depicting, so that he restrain himself to such as are plausible and natural, and contain no obvious anachronism.
As for elves and fairies, and other such mummery, I purposely omit the mention of them, as I should be very unwilling to confine within any bounds those surprizing imaginations, for whose vast capacity the limits of human nature are too narrow; whose works are to be considered as a new creation; and who have consequently just right to do what they will with their own.
To say the truth, if the historian will confine himself to what really happened, and utterly reject any circumstance, which, though never so well attested, he must be well assured is false, he will sometimes fall into the marvellous, but never into the incredible.
They differ, again, in their length: for Tragedy endeavours, as far as possible, to confine itself to a single revolution of the sun, or but slightly to exceed this limit; whereas the Epic action has no limits of time.
As a very distinguished flirt I have always been taught to consider her, but it has lately fallen In my way to hear some particulars of her conduct at Langford: which prove that she does not confine herself to that sort of honest flirtation which satisfies most people, but aspires to the more delicious gratification of making a whole family miserable.
But if the area be large, its several districts will almost certainly present different conditions of life; and then if natural selection be modifying and improving a species in the several districts, there will be intercrossing with the other individuals of the same species on the confines of each.
When converted by subsidence into large separate islands, there will still exist many individuals of the same species on each island: intercrossing on the confines of the range of each species will thus be checked: after physical changes of any kind, immigration will be prevented, so that new places in the polity of each island will have to be filled up by modifications of the old inhabitants; and time will be allowed for the varieties in each to become well modified and perfected.
Creon desires to bury Oedipus on the confines of Thebes so as to avoid the pollution and yet offer due rites at his tomb.
And, more surprising still, a high screen with folding sides stands before the fire, and confines the light which it might otherwise give exclusively to the ceiling.