Other forms: confined, confines, confining
To confine is to keep somebody or something within strict limits. Confine it to one page, confined to bed, confined space.
It covers physical restriction — confined to quarters, confined to a wheelchair, which many disabled people object to as a description — and the limiting of scope: confine your remarks to the point. A confined space is a defined hazard in workplace safety, with specific rules. Note confinement, which also once meant the period of childbirth; and confines, meaning boundaries.
1verbconfineTo keep somebody or something within strict limits.
“The patient was confined to bed for a month after the operation.”
2verbscopeTo limit the scope of something.
“Please confine your comments to the topic we are discussing.”
confine is a restricting.
Also accepted in games: restrict
Latin confinis means bordering, from con plus finis, a boundary. Finish, define and final come from the same boundary.
Latin
confinium
Medieval Latin
confines
Middle French
confiner
English, today
confine
From Middle French confiner, from confins, from Medieval Latin confines, from Latin confinium, from confīnis.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA