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Carceral is a member of a small but imposing family: like its close relations incarcerate (meaning "to imprison") and incarceration (meaning "confinement in a jail or prison"), its ultimate source is the Latin word for "prison," carcer. All three words have been in use since the 16th century, and all three are more common today than they were a century ago. Carceral has always been the rarest of the group, but its use has increased significantly since the turn of the current century, most often within academic or legal contexts.
Examples of carceral in a Sentence
Phillip Vance Smith, JSTOR Daily, 1 Feb. 2024
Castro has not outlined how this new prison will overcome systemic issues that have plagued the country’s existing carceral system.
—Ellen Ioanes, Vox, 20 June 2024
The study found that the decisions of the 14 most carceral judges in New York City resulted in an estimated 580 additional people detained and more than $77 million of additional costs borne by taxpayers.
—Eliza Orlins, New York Daily News, 15 Mar. 2024
But those can seem like exceptions, carceral deviations from the uncoercive norm.
—Eric Boodman, STAT, 21 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for carceral 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'carceral.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near carceral
Cite this Entry
“Carceral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carceral. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.
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