jail 1 of 2

noun

ˈjāl How to pronounce jail (audio)
Definition of jailnext
as in prison
a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody sentenced to three years in jail for his crime

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

jail

2 of 2

verb

as in to imprison
to put in or as if in prison threatened to jail the punks if they so much as jaywalked

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of jail
Noun
He was not sentenced to jail time but did have to complete a domestic violence treatment program as a result of his convictions. — Michael Nied, People.com, 19 Mar. 2025 For that, 69-year-old Peters sits in the Larimer County jail, just a few months into the first part of her 9-year sentence. — Mike Davis, The Denver Post, 19 Mar. 2025
Verb
Listen to this article A man who felt evil’s presence on an American Airlines flight attacked flight attendants and swallowed rosary beads before he was subdued and jailed in Savannah, Ga., authorities said. — Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 12 Mar. 2025 San José mayor proposes jailing homeless people who repeatedly refuse shelter. — Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for jail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jail
  1. prison
  2. imprison
  3. penitentiary
  4. incarcerate
Noun
  • Three days later, his immigration attorney was able to reach an ICE official who confirmed that his client was in a prison in another country.
    — Brian Bennett, TIME, 21 Mar. 2025
  • The Tate brothers were held in a Romanian prison until March 2023, when they were released on house arrest.
    — Lynsey Eidell, People.com, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of prison
Verb
  • But families of three men who appear to have been deported and imprisoned in El Salvador told the Miami Herald that their relatives have no gang affiliation – and two said their relatives had never been charged with a crime in the U.S. or elsewhere.
    — Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 18 Mar. 2025
  • A day later, the WFP announced one of its staffers died while imprisoned by the Houthis.
    — Jon Gambrell, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of imprison
Noun
  • The complaints at Lee mirror accounts from what was then a federal penitentiary, USP Thomson in Illinois, especially the overuse of four-point restraints.
    — Christie Thompson, NPR, 18 Dec. 2024
  • Lamberth also noted that there are only about 16 transgender women housed in female penitentiaries, including the three plaintiffs who sued.
    — Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
Definition of penitentiary
Verb
  • Six guards were charged with murder last month in the December death of Robert Brooks, who was incarcerated at the Marcy Correctional Facility, across the street from the Mid-State prison.
    — Michael Hill, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2025
  • Atkins married twice while incarcerated: first to Donald Lee Laisure from 1981 to 1982, and later to Whitehouse, the attorney who represented her in parole hearings, in 1987.
    — Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of incarcerate

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“Jail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jail. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.

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