# custody

Pronunciation: US say "KUS-tuh-dee" /ˈkʌstədi/; UK

## Noun

1. The legal right to care for someone or something, especially a child.
   - Simple: The legal right to look after a child or another person or thing.
   - _The court awarded joint custody to both parents._
   - _She fought for custody of her younger siblings after their parents died._
2. The condition of being imprisoned or detained, usually while awaiting trial.
   - Simple: The state of being held by police or kept in jail before a trial.
   - _He was held in custody for three weeks before the hearing._
   - _The protesters were released from custody the following morning._
3. Temporary possession or care of property belonging to someone else.
   - Simple: The holding or care of something that belongs to another person for a short time.
   - _The bank holds the deeds in custody until the loan is repaid._
   - _He left the rare coins in the custody of a trusted friend._
4. A territorial division within the Order of Friars Minor, placed under the authority of a custos.
   - Simple: A region of Franciscan friars led by an official called a custos.
   - _The new custody was carved out of the larger province._
   - _Each custody reported to the minister provincial through its custos._

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin custōdia ("a keeping, watch, guard, prison"), from custōs ("a keeper, watchman, guard"). It is a doublet of custode.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/custody (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).