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Detain vs Arrest - What's the difference?

detain | arrest |

Arrest is a synonym of detain.



In transitive terms the difference between detain and arrest

is that detain is to keep back or from; to withhold while arrest is to catch the attention of.

As verbs the difference between detain and arrest

is that detain is keep (someone) from proceeding by holding them back or making claims on their attention while arrest is to stop the motion of (a person or animal).

As a noun arrest is

a check, stop, an act or instance of arresting something.

detain

English

Verb

(en verb)
  • Keep (someone) from proceeding by holding them back or making claims on their attention.
  • To put under custody.
  • To keep back or from; to withhold.
  • * Jeremy Taylor
    • Detain not the wages of the hireling.

    arrest

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A check, stop, an act or instance of something.
  • The condition of being stopped, standstill.
  • (legal) The act of arresting a criminal, suspect etc.
  • A confinement, detention, as after an arrest.
  • A device to physically arrest motion.
  • (nautical) The judicial detention of a ship to secure a financial claim against its operators.
  • (obsolete) Any seizure by power, physical or otherwise.
  • * Jeremy Taylor
    • The sad stories of fire from heaven, the burning of his sheep, etc., were sad arrests to his troubled spirit.
  • (farriery) A scurfiness of the back part of the hind leg of a horse.
    • (White)

    Derived terms

    * arrest warrant * cardiac arrest * house arrest

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (obsolete) To stop the motion of (a person or animal).
  • * Philips
    • Nor could her virtues the relentless hand / Of Death arrest .
  • (obsolete) To stay, remain.
    • (Spenser)
  • To stop (a process, course etc.).
  • * 1994 , Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom , Abacus 2010, p. 707:
    • To try to arrest the spiral of violence, I contacted Chief Buthelezi to arrange a meeting.
  • * 1997 : Chris Horrocks, Introducing Foucault , page 69 (Totem Books, Icon Books; ISBN 1840460865)
    • Knowledge replaced universal resemblance with finite differences. History was arrested and turned into tables …Western reason had entered the age of judgement.
  • To seize (someone) with the authority of the law; to take into legal custody.
    • The police have arrested a suspect in the murder inquiry.
  • * Shakespeare
    • I arrest thee of high treason.
  • To catch the attention of.
  • * 1919 : :
    • There is something about this picture—something bold and vigorous, which arrests the attention. I feel sure it would be highly popular.

    Derived terms

    * arrester, arrestor * arrestment * arresting

    Anagrams

    * * * * ----