Synonyms for fence in
verb confine; put in jail- apprehend
- commit
- detain
- hold
- incarcerate
- jail
- lock up
- remand
- cage
- check
- circumscribe
- closet
- constrain
- curb
- ice
- immure
- impound
- intern
- keep
- limit
- nab
- occlude
- pen
- restrain
- stockade
- trammel
- bastille
- bottle up
- hold captive
- hold hostage
- hold in custody
- keep captive
- keep in custody
- lock in
- put away
- put behind bars
- rail in
- send to prison
- send up
- shut in
- take prisoner
Antonyms for fence in
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the
Philip Lief Group.
caged
verb. hold in enclosure
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the
Philip Lief Group.
Word Origin & History
early 14c., "action of defending," shortening of defens (see defense). Spelling alternated between -c- and -s- in Middle English. Sense of "enclosure" is first recorded mid-15c. on notion of "that which serves as a defense." Sense of "dealer in stolen goods" is thieves' slang, first attested c.1700, from notion of such transactions taking place under defense of secrecy. To be figuratively on the fence "uncommitted" is from 1828, perhaps from the notion of spectators at a fight, or a simple literal image: "A man sitting on the top of a fence, can jump down on either side with equal facility." [Bartlett, "Dictionary of Americanisms," 1848].