See detainer in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
{
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"2": "xno",
"3": "detener"
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{
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"2": "fro",
"3": "detenir"
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"name": "der"
},
{
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"1": "en",
"2": "detain",
"3": "-er",
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"pos2": "action noun suffix"
},
"expansion": "By surface analysis, detain + -er (action noun suffix)",
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},
{
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},
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"name": "etydate"
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"etymology_text": "Borrowed from Anglo-Norman detener, from Old French detenir. By surface analysis, detain + -er (action noun suffix). First attested in the 17th century.",
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91
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"ref": "2007 August 21, Kareem Fahim, “Presidential Candidate Blames Killings on Newark Sanctuary Policy”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2019:",
"text": "On Monday, the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency placed a similar detainer on Melvin Jovel, 18, who on Sunday was the sixth person to be arrested in the case.",
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"ref": "2008 March 23, Kareem Fahim, “Immigration Referrals by Police Draw Scrutiny”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 10 Feb 2018:",
"text": "Through January, immigration authorities placed detainers on an additional 1,468 people — giving federal agents the right to hold suspects who are released from jail. […] Scott Weber, the field office director for the enforcement office in Newark, said that in roughly a third of the cases, his agency would file a detainer or immigration charges; another third involved individuals who could be deported after their court cases; and the rest might be United States citizens or legal residents.",
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"ref": "2008 April 13, Christine Hauser, “U.S. Officials Are Expected to Charge Police Officer”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2018:",
"text": "Officer Torres’s lawyer, Paul S. Missan, said on Saturday that he had been told by a prison official in Pennsylvania that a detainer was lodged against his client, meaning he was likely to face federal charges.",
"type": "quotation"
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],
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"The right to keep a person, or a person's goods or property, against his will. A type of custody."
],
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"(law) The right to keep a person, or a person's goods or property, against his will. A type of custody."
],
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"name": "af"
}
],
"etymology_text": "From detain + -er (agent noun suffix).",
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{
"form": "detainers",
"tags": [
"plural"
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],
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"args": {},
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"ref": "1840, Ellen Pickering, Who shall be heir?, volume 1, page 146:",
"text": "[…] he chatted gaily with his fair detainer, showing no inclination to escape from the bondage in which she sought to retain him.",
"type": "quotation"
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"One who detains."
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"text": "On Monday, the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency placed a similar detainer on Melvin Jovel, 18, who on Sunday was the sixth person to be arrested in the case.",
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"text": "Through January, immigration authorities placed detainers on an additional 1,468 people — giving federal agents the right to hold suspects who are released from jail. […] Scott Weber, the field office director for the enforcement office in Newark, said that in roughly a third of the cases, his agency would file a detainer or immigration charges; another third involved individuals who could be deported after their court cases; and the rest might be United States citizens or legal residents.",
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"ref": "2008 April 13, Christine Hauser, “U.S. Officials Are Expected to Charge Police Officer”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2018:",
"text": "Officer Torres’s lawyer, Paul S. Missan, said on Saturday that he had been told by a prison official in Pennsylvania that a detainer was lodged against his client, meaning he was likely to face federal charges.",
"type": "quotation"
}
],
"glosses": [
"The right to keep a person, or a person's goods or property, against his will. A type of custody."
],
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"law",
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],
[
"goods",
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"(law) The right to keep a person, or a person's goods or property, against his will. A type of custody."
],
"topics": [
"law"
]
}
],
"word": "detainer"
}
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"ref": "1840, Ellen Pickering, Who shall be heir?, volume 1, page 146:",
"text": "[…] he chatted gaily with his fair detainer, showing no inclination to escape from the bondage in which she sought to retain him.",
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}
],
"glosses": [
"One who detains."
],
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]
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"word": "detainer"
}
Download raw JSONL data for detainer meaning in English (4.5kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-01-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-01-01 using wiktextract (96027d6 and 9905b1f). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
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