Meaning & use
confine
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To keep something or someone inside a limited space, so that they cannot easily move out.
Grammar: Takes an object and often a place, with to or in: confined to bed, confined in a cell.
Patterns
- confine someone to something
- confine something in something
- be confined to something
The nurse confined the sick children to one ward.
Heavy snow confined us to the cabin for three days.
The prisoners were confined in small, cold cells.
verbtransitive
To stop something from going beyond a certain limit, subject or area.
Grammar: Takes an object plus to: confine the discussion to the budget.
Patterns
- confine something to something
- confine yourself to something
Please confine your answers to the questions I asked.
Firefighters managed to confine the fire to the first floor.
He confines his reading to detective novels.
Word forms
| third person singular | confines |
|---|---|
| past tense | confined |
| -ing form | confining |
Common combinations
- confine to bed
- A bad back confined him to bed for a week.
- confine yourself to
- She confined herself to one cup of coffee a day.
- confine the damage
- Quick action helped confine the damage to one room.
- confined to a wheelchair
- After the accident he was confined to a wheelchair for months.
- confine the discussion
- The chair asked us to confine the discussion to the agenda.
Synonyms and how they differ
- restrict
- Restrict is used for limiting amounts, access or freedom, while confine suggests keeping within a space or boundary.
- imprison
- Imprison means putting someone in prison, which is much stronger than confine.
- limit
- Limit is the general word for setting a maximum, whereas confine suggests being kept inside walls or a narrow area.
- contain
- Contain is used for stopping something harmful from spreading, and is close to confine in sentences about fires or diseases.
Opposites
Word family
- confinement noun
- the state of being kept in a place, such as solitary confinement
- confined adjective
- limited or small, as in a confined space
- confines noun
- the limits or borders of a place, always plural
- unconfined adjective
- not limited or kept in
Commonly confused: confine or confide?
confine vs confide
Confide means to tell someone a secret. It looks similar to confine but has a different meaning and pattern.
Practice
The sign asked visitors to ___ their picnic to the grassy area near the lake.
Choose one answer.
Confine something to an area means to keep it within that area. Confuse, confirm and confess do not fit the pattern with to an area.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “confine”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.