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 Her jumpsuit is a couture twist on the cartoonish striped getup of a jailbird. Jemal Polson, CNN Money, 8 May 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 Plot: Homer acquires Snake’s luxurious hair after the jailbird is sent to the electric chair. Joshua Kurp, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024 Twenty years later, an actress named Selma Vaz Dias, who wanted to dramatize Good Morning, Midnight on the radio, found her living in poverty and obscurity in the English countryside with a third husband who also ended an embezzler and a jailbird. Vivian Gornick, The New Republic, 6 Jan. 2023 The jailbird and guard stayed in touch over the phone, according to Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton. Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 11 May 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jailbird
Noun
  • To do so, Nemo audaciously steals a prototype submarine from the penal colony in which he is imprisoned, escaping into the ocean with a motley crew of fellow prisoners.
    Katie Campione, Deadline, 8 July 2025
  • Sunday’s attack was the latest at a California state prison, nearly a month after CDCR officials briefly suspended inmate visitations in June after a surge in drug overdoses and violent attacks on prisoners and officers.
    Darrell Smith July 7, Sacbee.com, 7 July 2025
Noun
  • Two employees at an Arkansas prison where an inmate escaped in May have been fired for policy violations, officials said.
    Jade Walker, CNN Money, 11 July 2025
  • Assigned to a specialized unit called Operation Safe Jails, Meiser was supposed to be monitoring gang members who sell drugs, collect protection money and attack other inmates within the eight facilities overseen by the Sheriff’s Department that collectively hold more than 12,000 men and women.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2025
Noun
  • Tim Matheson played Griff King, a former convict who earns a second chance working on Ponderosa during the show’s final season.
    Tereza Shkurtaj, People.com, 29 June 2025
  • Directed by Stoller and starring Ferrell, the comedy, which is currently filming, follows a young convict fresh out of prison (Zac Efron) who takes a reality TV courtroom hostage blaming the megalomaniac TV judge (Ferrell) for a past ruling that the convict feels ruined his life.
    Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 24 June 2025
Noun
  • Mod cons have been carefully integrated throughout, too.
    Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 7 July 2025
  • Check reviews to learn more about the pros and cons of each model and set a realistic budget before making a purchase.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 4 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Jailbird.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jailbird. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.

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