WordGarden.ioimmure
C2Pronunciation
UK
US
Meanings
Verb
to enclose or imprison someone within walls or another confined place
to shut someone away or isolate them from ordinary life
Beyond the definition
Imagine a princess locked away in a tower. To immure someone is not just to lock them up; it suggests shutting them in on purpose, often for a long time. The idea is usually that they are walled in or kept apart from the outside world. While "imprison" is close in meaning, immure has a stronger sense of isolation. You might say someone immured themself in study during finals week, but that is figurative. Historically, the word was more likely to suggest stone walls and little hope of escape.
To immure someone means to enclose or confine them within limits, often physically, as if building a wall around them. It's a rather dramatic word with roots in the idea of literally "walling up" a person – think medieval castles and secret chambers. While it can be used figuratively to describe being trapped by circumstances (like "immured by debt"), it most strongly suggests physical imprisonment or seclusion.
Historically, immure was often associated with religious orders taking vows of enclosure, or with cruel punishments where people were sealed alive within walls. Today, while less common in everyday speech, it still evokes a sense of complete and lasting confinement. You might read about a character being "immured in a remote monastery" or a prisoner being "immured within the fortress."
Unlike simply imprisoning someone for a set term, to immure suggests a more permanent state – a deliberate severing from society. It's a word that carries weight and often implies a tragic or unsettling situation. Think of it as not just locking the door, but building the walls higher and thicker, making escape nearly impossible.
Examples
- 1
Punishment
Legend says the traitor was immured in a tower and left there to die.
- 2
Self-isolation
After the scandal, he immured himself in his country house and refused all visitors.
- Patternimmure yourself in + place
shut yourself away there
- 3
Social roles
The novel portrays a society that immures women in rigid social roles.
- Usage
used figuratively here, about severely limiting someone's life
See also
Forms and spellings
4 forms open this card.
Main spelling
- immureverb
Forms
- immuredpast tenseverb
- immuresverb
- immuring-ing formverb