the state of being imprisoned; "he was held in captivity until he died"; "the imprisonment of captured soldiers"; "his ignominious incarceration in the local jail"; "he practiced the immurement of his enemies in the castle dungeon"
payment extorted by gangsters on threat of violence; "every store in the neighborhood had to pay him protection"
the activity of protecting someone or something; "the witnesses demanded police protection"
the imposition of duties or quotas on imports in order to protect domestic industry against foreign competition; "he made trade protection a plank in the party platform"
the condition of being protected; "they were huddled together for protection"; "he enjoyed a sense of peace and protection in his new home"
acting in a manner that is gentle and mild and even-tempered; "his fingers have learned gentleness"; "suddenly her gigantic power melted into softness for the baby"; "even in the pulpit there are moments when mildness of manner is not enough"
prevent from doing something or being in a certain state; "We must prevent the cancer from spreading"; "His snoring kept me from falling asleep"; "Keep the child from eating the marbles"
keep from happening or arising; make impossible; "My sense of tact forbids an honest answer"; "Your role in the projects precludes your involvement in the competitive project"
put down by force or intimidation; "The government quashes any attempt of an uprising"; "China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently"; "The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land"
not tractable; difficult to manage or mold; "an intractable disposition"; "intractable pain"; "the most intractable issue of our era"; "intractable metal"