Arrest is a verb meaning to seize someone by legal authority or to stop or hinder progress or movement. It can also function as a noun for the act of arresting or the state of being arrested. The core sense centers on halting action or compelling compliance, typically within a formal or official context.
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"The police may arrest a suspect after gathering sufficient evidence."
"The movement of the machine was arrested by a safety mechanism."
"A stay-at-home order can arrest the spread of disease during an outbreak."
"Security concerns arrested further negotiations until a new agreement could be reached."
The verb arrest comes from Middle English arresten, from Old French arrest, from arreter ‘to stop, check, hinder,’ from a- (toward) + rester ‘to stay, remain’ (from Latin restāre ‘to stand still’). The sense of detaining someone derives from the broader legal vocabulary in medieval Europe as sheriffs and magistrates enforced commands and custody. In English, arrestas a noun appeared in the 14th–15th centuries in legal contexts, but the common modern sense of police custody and halting action solidified by the 16th century. Over time, arrest broadened metaphorically to mean to stop progress, such as “arrest development.” The word travels through Romance roots into Germanic structures of law and order, reflecting the long-standing concept of seizure and confinement as a formal restraint.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "arrest" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "arrest"
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Pronounce it as uh-REST with the primary stress on the second syllable. In IPA: /əˈrɛst/. The first syllable is a reduced schwa, the second contains the /r/ followed by the short /ɛ/ as in “red,” ending with a clear /t/ release. In connected speech, you’ll hear a tighter, shorter vowel in rapid speech, but keep the /ɹ/ clearly pronounced before the /ɛ/ and ensure the final /t/ is released rather than swallowed.
Common errors: 1) merging the /r/ with the preceding vowel into a wrong vowel sound, producing /əɹˈæst/ or /ærɛst/; 2) not releasing the final /t/, ending with a t-voicing or stopping before the consonant. Correction: maintain a clear schwa in the first syllable, produce a firm rhotic /ɹ/ if you’re rhotic, and finish with a crisp /t/ release. Practice as /əˈrɛst/ with a small vowel before the /r/ and a clean alveolar stop at the end.
In US, UK, and AU, the core is /əˈrɛst/ with a rhotic /ɹ/ in rhotic varieties. US and AU speakers typically create a slightly more pronounced /ɹ/ before /ɛ/, while UK speakers may have a more non-rhotic feel in connected speech but still produce the /r/ in this word due to the following vowel onset; the vowel quality remains /ɛ/ in all. Differences are subtle; tension and speed of the final /t/ release may vary, with UK often tasting crisper in careful speech.
The difficulty comes from the short, clipped final /t/ and the need to execute a rapid /ɹ/ transition into a short /ɛ/ vowel. The schwa+consonant cluster in the first syllable must be precise to avoid turning it into /æ/ or /ɜː/. Managing the brief vowel duration before /r/ and ensuring a clean, audible /t/ release require careful tongue positioning and air control. IPA cues: /əˈrɛst/ with a quick, firm /t/.
No silent letters in arrest. The challenge lies in producing a clear schwa before the /r/, a distinct /r/ sound, and a crisp /t/ at the end. All letters are pronounced; the initial a is reduced to a schwa and the final t is released.
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