A prison is a building where criminals are kept as punishment or where people accused of a crime are kept before their trial.
The prison's inmates are being kept in their cells.
He was sentenced to life in prison.
They released Mr Mandela from prison in 1990.
Synonyms: jail, confinement, can [slang], pound More Synonyms of prison
prison in British English
(ˈprɪzən)
noun
1.
a public building used to house convicted criminals and accused persons remanded in custody and awaiting trial
See also jail, penitentiary, reformatory
2.
any place of confinement or seeming confinement
Word origin
C12: from Old French prisun, from Latin prēnsiō a capturing, from prehendere to lay hold of
prison in American English
(ˈprɪzən)
noun
1.
a place where persons are confined
2.
a.
a building, usually with cells, where convicted criminals, esp. those serving longer sentences, are confined
b.
such a place for holding accused persons who are awaiting, or on, trial
see also penitentiary, jail, reformatory
3.
the state or condition of being confined, restricted, or limited in any way
in the prison of his own desires
verb transitive
4. Archaic
imprison
Word origin
OFr < L < prensio, for prehensio, a taking < prehendere, to take: see prehensile
COBUILD Collocations
prison
adult prison
build a prison
prisons are full
Examples of 'prison' in a sentence
prison
They face up to life in prison if convicted.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
He is expected to be given a lengthy prison term when he is sentenced today.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They were being held at the open prison as part of preparation for their release.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
That made his life in prison more difficult.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The riot is the fourth disturbance behind bars in two months and underlines how volatile the prison system has become.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Prison is about punishment and rehabilitation.
The Sun (2016)
Ministers have pledged a 3million investment to help reduce violence and cut serious organised crime across the prison system.
The Sun (2016)
Prisoners are invariably troubled people and prisons troubled places, but they shouldn't be as troubled as this.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
There is a solution that doesn't cost money: we need to keep more people out of prison or shorten their sentences.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
When people leave prison they ought to be less likely to offend than when they come in.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The only justification for prisons is to house people for the protection of the public and themselves.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Their prison terms did not nearly reflect the potential gravity of the crime.
The Sun (2015)
The moves are likely to alarm prison governors.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
The judge admitted many would expect her to be sent to prison for her crime.
The Sun (2012)
They are in prison awaiting trial on charges of running a criminal organisation.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We must remember that prison is a place of punishment.
The Sun (2010)
Why was he sent to an open prison?
The Sun (2013)
We must go back to prisons places of punishment.
The Sun (2008)
The offence carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The Sun (2012)
This was in effect a prison for young people between the ages of fourteen and eighteen years.
Coyle, Andrew & Stern, Vivien The Prisons We Deserve (1994)
Race and gender ceased to be prison houses and became optional identities.
The Times Literary Supplement (2011)
In another case the judges increased a prison term from five to eight years.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Many of the prison governors were appointed directly from service in the armed forces.
Coyle, Andrew & Stern, Vivien The Prisons We Deserve (1994)
The courts do remand a significant minority of accused people in prison to await trial.
Coyle, Andrew & Stern, Vivien The Prisons We Deserve (1994)
Such as the desire for more prison places and the wish to spend less and less.
The Sun (2007)
What the hell were they doing in an open prison?
The Sun (2014)
The primary purpose of prison is punishment.
The Sun (2013)
The first choice is death and the second life in prison.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
These are people for whom prison is the wrong place.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Prison guards are unwittingly passing on coded information in what appear to be innocent messages from criminals to their relatives.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
The other sailors face up to life in prison for the crime of abandoning ship and the lesser charge of negligence.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The prisoners were electrocuted by prison guards when they complained, it was claimed.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
She had been in prison or under house arrest for 15 of the past 21 years.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Quotations
Prison is a second-by-second assault on the soul, a day-to-day degradation of the selfMumia Abu-JamalLive From Death Row
Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cageRichard LovelaceTo Althea, from Prison
In other languages
prison
British English: prison /ˈprɪzn/ NOUN
A prison is a building where criminals are kept.
...a maximum-security prison.
American English: prison
Arabic: حَبْس
Brazilian Portuguese: prisão
Chinese: 监狱
Croatian: zatvor
Czech: vězení
Danish: fængsel
Dutch: gevangenis
European Spanish: prisión
Finnish: vankila
French: prison
German: Gefängnis
Greek: φυλακή
Italian: prigione
Japanese: 刑務所
Korean: 교도소
Norwegian: fengsel
Polish: więzienie
European Portuguese: prisão
Romanian: închisoare
Russian: тюрьма
Latin American Spanish: prisión
Swedish: fängelse
Thai: เรือนจำ
Turkish: hapishane
Ukrainian: в'язниця
Vietnamese: nhà tù
All related terms of 'prison'
open prison
An open prison is a prison where there are fewer restrictions on prisoners than in a normal prison.
prison camp
A prison camp is a guarded camp where prisoners of war or political prisoners are kept.
prison farm
a farm attached to a prison , where prisoners carry out hard labour
prison riot
a disturbance made by an unruly mob in a prison
prison van
a police van for transporting prisoners
prison yard
a piece of enclosed ground attached to a prison , where prisoners may take exercise at certain times
adult prison
A prison is a building where criminals are kept as punishment or where people accused of a crime are kept before their trial .
county prison
the prison of a particular county
Fleet Prison
(formerly) a London prison , esp used for holding debtors
prison guard
an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
prison inmate
a person who is confined in a prison
prison warder
an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
State prison
(in the US) a prison where persons convicted of serious crimes are confined
prison governor
the senior administrator or head of a prison
prison hospital
A hospital is a place where people who are ill are looked after by nurses and doctors .
prison officer
an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
prison sentence
confinement in prison as a punishment imposed on a person who has been found guilty of a crime
prison visitor
a person who volunteers to pay regular visits to prison inmates
build a prison
A prison is a building where criminals are kept as punishment or where people accused of a crime are kept before their trial .
dispersal prison
a prison organized and equipped to accommodate a proportion of the most dangerous and highest security risk prisoners
prison authorities
the people in charge of running a prison
prison population
all the people who are confined in prison
minimum security prison
A minimum security prison is a prison where there are fewer restrictions on prisoners than in a normal prison.
the Fleet
a former small creek in London , now a covered sewer
Chinese translation of 'prison'
prison
(ˈprɪzn)
n
(c/u) (= institution) 监(監)狱(獄) (jiānyù) (所, suǒ)
(u) (= imprisonment) 坐牢 (zuòláo)
(c) (fig) 束缚(縛) (shùfù)
in prison坐牢 (zuòláo)
All related terms of 'prison'
in prison
坐牢 zuòláo
prison officer
狱(獄)官 yùguān [ 名 míng ]
military/prison slang
军(軍)队(隊)/监(監)狱(獄)俚语(語) jūnduì/jiānyù lǐyǔ
a prison population of 44,000
44,000名囚犯 sìwàn sìqiān míng qiúfàn
to sentence sb to death/to 5 years in prison
判某人死刑/5年囚禁 pàn mǒurén sǐxíng/wǔ nián qiújìn
to be thrown in(to) jail or prison
被投入监(監)狱(獄) bèi tóurù jiānyù
(noun)
Definition
a public building used to hold convicted criminals and accused people awaiting trial
They released him from prison in 1990.
Synonyms
jail
Three prisoners escaped from a jail.
confinement
can (slang)
pound
nick (British, slang)
He spent a few years in the nick for smuggling.
stir (slang, old-fashioned)
cooler (slang, old-fashioned)
jug (slang, old-fashioned)
dungeon
the ceiling of the tiny dungeon
clink (slang)
glasshouse (military, informal)
gaol
penitentiary (US)
slammer (slang)
lockup
quod (slang, rare)
penal institution
calaboose (US, rare)
choky (slang)
poky or pokey (US, Canadian, slang)
boob (Australian, slang)
Quotations
Prison is a second-by-second assault on the soul, a day-to-day degradation of the self [Mumia Abu-Jamal – Live From Death Row]Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage [Richard Lovelace – To Althea, from Prison]