de ‧ tain /dɪˈteɪn/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1400-1500 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: detenir , from Latin detinere , from tenere 'to hold' ]
1 . to officially prevent someone from leaving a place:
Two suspects have been detained by the police for questioning.
She was detained in hospital with a suspected broken leg.
2 . [usually passive] formal to stop someone from leaving as soon as they expected SYN delay :
He was detained in Washington on urgent business.