v., -rest·ed, -rest·ing, -rests. v.tr.
- To stop; check: a brake that automatically arrests motion; arrested the growth of the tumor.
- To seize and hold under the authority of law.
- To capture and hold briefly (the attention, for example); engage.
To undergo cardiac arrest: The patient arrested en route to the hospital.
n.
- The act of detaining in legal custody: the arrest of a criminal suspect.
- The state of being so detained: a criminal under arrest.
- A device for stopping motion, especially of a moving part.
- The act of stopping or the condition of being stopped.
[Middle English aresten, from Old French arester, from Vulgar Latin *arrestāre : Latin ad-, ad- + Latin restāre, to stand still (re-, re- + stāre, to stand).]
arrestable ar·rest'a·ble adj.arrester ar·rest'er or ar·res'tor n.
arrestment ar·rest'ment n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
