arrest
- 01 B1 Intermediate
v.when the police take someone away because they believe the person broke the law.
v.to seize someone by legal authority and take them into custody.
Simple“The police had to arrest the man after he tried to steal a car.”
In context“Officers moved in to arrest the suspect as he was attempting to board an international flight at the city's main airport.”
UsageThe verb is transitive and requires a direct object, usually a person.
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to stop something from moving or to slow down a process.
v.to check or halt the motion or progress of something.
Simple“The doctors gave him medicine to arrest the spread of the infection.”
In context“The new government policy was designed to arrest the decline of the manufacturing sector before the economic crisis deepened further.”
Antonyms - 03 C1 Advanced
v.to suddenly get someone's attention because something is very interesting or unusual.
v.to attract and fix the attention or interest of someone.
Simple“The bright colors of the painting will arrest your attention immediately.”
In context“The stark contrast of the ruins against the modern skyline was enough to arrest the attention of every passerby.”
- 04 B1 Intermediate
n.the act of the police catching someone and taking them to jail.
n.the act of taking a person into custody under the authority of the law.
Simple“The news reported the arrest of three people after the bank robbery.”
In context“The sudden arrest of the CEO sent shockwaves through the financial markets and caused the company's stock price to tumble.”
- 05 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a sudden stop in the normal working of an organ, especially the heart.
n.the sudden cessation of the functional activity of an organ.
Simple“He was rushed to the hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest at home.”
In context“The patient went into respiratory arrest shortly after the surgery, requiring the medical team to intervene with emergency ventilation.”
UsageCommonly occurs in the compound 'cardiac arrest'.
Usage arrest warrants
From Middle English arest (noun) and aresten (verb), from Old French areste (noun) and arester (“to stay, stop”, verb), from Vulgar Latin arrestō, from Latin ad- (“to”) + restō (“to stop, remain behind, stay back”), from re- (“back”) + stō (“to stand”), from Proto-Indo-European steh₂- (“to stand”), equivalent to ad- + rest. Compare French arrêter (“to stop”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.