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jailbird

noun

ˈjāl-ˌbərd How to pronounce jailbird (audio)
Definition of jailbirdnext
as in prisoner
a person convicted as a criminal and serving a prison sentence had spent most of his sorry life as a jailbird in hoosegows across the South

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 jailbird But these jailbirds aren’t using their own fingers to fire off missives or create clones. — Andrew Zucker, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026 And these seven crooked cops are just the tip of the MSP jailbird iceberg. — Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 17 Jan. 2026 At no point has the jailbird shown contrition for her crimes. — Krista Kafer, Denver Post, 1 Dec. 2025 Becomes a jailbird at a high-security zoo after he’s caught, with the newest Wallace & Gromit film, Vengeance Most Fowl, finding Feathers, all these years later, hell-bent on getting even with the duo who locked him up. — Devon Ivie, Vulture, 6 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for jailbird
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jailbird
  1. prisoner
  2. inmate
  3. convict
  4. con
Noun
  • Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Poland argues that artworks made by prisoners forced to do so in Nazi concentration camps are not their legal property.
    — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Krieps played the notorious wife of a Nazi concentration camp commander, Ilsa Koch, who was said to torture prisoners and make household objects out of human skin.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of prisoner
Noun
  • In Barisone’s telling, staff and fellow-inmates were awed by his diligence.
    — Ian Parker, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
  • There’s always a guard on the take, a civilian who manages to lend an assist from the outside, or — as the case may be — a creative writing teacher who develops a crush on one of her inmate students.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 13 Sep. 2026
Definition of inmate
Noun
  • If the convict can help transport the loot from that camp to a safe space far from the government’s prying eyes, the warden will punch his get-outta-jail-free card.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Nor could Grossman write about collaborators or the punishment battalions composed of convicts that were used as cannon fodder (one of many parallels between the conduct of the Soviet army and the present-day Russian military in Ukraine).
    — Nick Holdstock, The Dial, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of convict
Noun
  • Chile con queso, with the option to add picadillo, guacamole or sour cream.
    — Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Sep. 2026
  • There's also a second TV in here, as well as a second mini-split air-con unit.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of con

Browse Nearby Words

jail
jailbird
jailbirds
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Cite this Entry

“Jailbird.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jailbird. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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