Meaning & use
immured
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“immured” is a form of “immure”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitiveliteraryformal
kept shut inside a place and unable to leave, especially a small dark room or a prison.
Grammar: Used mostly in the passive: be immured in a place. The active form 'immure someone' is rare but correct.
Patterns
- be immured in something
- immure someone in something
The old man had been immured in a tiny attic room for years, and no one knew he was there.
In the story, the princess is immured in a tower and can only speak to the birds.
Prisoners were immured in cells so small that they could not lie down.
verbtransitiveliteraryformal
to shut someone in a place and stop them from leaving.
Grammar: Active use: immure someone. Often followed by 'in' or 'within'. More common in writing than in speech.
Patterns
- immure someone in something
- immure oneself in something
The king immured his brother in the castle to keep him away from the throne.
She immured herself in her room and refused to see anyone for a week.
verbtransitiveliteraryformaltechnical
to build a wall around something so that it is completely enclosed.
Grammar: Used about objects, not people: immure a treasure, immure a tomb. Often passive.
Patterns
- be immured in something
- immure something within something
The gold was immured in the stone wall, and only the architect knew where.
Ancient graves were often immured within the thick walls of a church.
Word forms
| third person singular | immures |
|---|---|
| past tense | immured |
| past participle | immured |
| -ing form | immuring |
Common combinations
- immured in a cell
- The rebel was immured in a cell beneath the palace.
- immured in darkness
- For days he was immured in darkness, with no window and no lamp.
- immured within walls
- The treasure lay immured within walls of solid rock.
- immured for life
- In that era, some criminals were immured for life in remote fortresses.
Synonyms and how they differ
- imprisoned
- More common and less literary; it means held in a prison, while 'immured' often suggests being walled in or hidden away.
- confined
- Focuses on being kept within limits, often for medical or official reasons; 'immured' is darker and more permanent.
- walled up
- The everyday phrase for being sealed behind a wall; 'immured' is its formal, literary equivalent.
Opposites
Word family
- immure verb
- The base form: to shut someone or something in.
- immurement noun
- The act of shutting someone in a place, especially behind walls.
Commonly confused: immured or inured? immured or immortal?
immured vs inured
Sounds similar but means 'accustomed to something unpleasant'. 'Immured' is about being shut in; 'inured' is about getting used to hardship.
immured vs immortal
A different word meaning 'living forever'. The shared 'imm-' start can cause confusion.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
The passive structure 'was immured in' is correct. Option 1 uses the wrong preposition ('to'). Option 2 has no auxiliary verb, so the sentence has no main verb. Option 3 uses the active -ing form, which does not fit the passive meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “immured”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.