From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbe confined to somebody/somethingbe confined to somebody/somethingto exist in or affect only a particular place or group The risk of infection is confined to medical personnel. → confined
Examples from the Corpus
be confined to somebody/something• The blue-chip market is confined to a very limited number of names.• Pauline Paul was confined to a wheelchair as calcium drained from her bones.• They also will be confined to base, except for official business in town.• Typically, the patient remains conscious if the disturbance is confined to one hemisphere.• All non-managerial personnel belong to the same union, but the privilege of membership is confined to regular workers.• Even the cities were secured by the settlers: native people were confined to rented property in peripheral townships.• A corporate role could just be confined to the provision of specialist services, such as marketing research and specialist advertising advice.• However, its benefits were confined to those already holding land, and it did nothing to relieve the problem of landlessness. 