Meaning & use

custody

noun·Academic

The legal right or responsibility to care for and make decisions about a child.

See it in a sentence

The parents shared custody of their two children after the divorce.

The court granted full custody to the mother following the hearing.

A note on using this word

Custody also means the state of being held by police, as in taken into custody, which refers to detention rather than parental care.

Words with a similar meaning

guardianshipcare

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Another way to use it

2. noun

The state of being detained by police or held under guard.

The suspect remained in custody until his bail hearing the next morning.

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