variants
or less commonly cell mate
plural cellmates also cell mates
: a person who shares a prison cell with another prisoner
When his cellmates learned that his bond had been set at $1 million (and bail at $500,000), they broke into laughter and shook their heads in disbelief.—
Richard Behar
Richard BeharWithin a week, guards came by at night and told me to get ready. … I said goodbye to my cellmates and gathered my things …—Clare Morgana Gillis
Clare Morgana GillisExamples of cellmate in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
While awaiting extradition to New Jersey, Wright allegedly killed his cellmate in a fight in 2019, the Courier News and Home News Tribune reported.
—Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 5 Mar. 2024
Marcel Fontaine, a French diplomat who was released in May 1988 after three years of captivity, recalled the time cellmate Anderson thought freedom was near because he was allowed to see the sun and eat a hamburger.
—Alistair Bell, USA TODAY, 22 Apr. 2024
Shortly after sending the letter, the cellmate was transferred to MacDougall prison in Suffield, Conn.
—Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 4 Apr. 2024
Prisons that had been built by the shah filled to many times their capacity, such that cellmates had to take turns sleeping because there was not enough room to lie on the floor.
—Laura Secor, Foreign Affairs, 6 Dec. 2013
See all Example Sentences for cellmate 
Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 5 Mar. 2024
Marcel Fontaine, a French diplomat who was released in May 1988 after three years of captivity, recalled the time cellmate Anderson thought freedom was near because he was allowed to see the sun and eat a hamburger.
—Alistair Bell, USA TODAY, 22 Apr. 2024
Shortly after sending the letter, the cellmate was transferred to MacDougall prison in Suffield, Conn.
—Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 4 Apr. 2024
Prisons that had been built by the shah filled to many times their capacity, such that cellmates had to take turns sleeping because there was not enough room to lie on the floor.
—Laura Secor, Foreign Affairs, 6 Dec. 2013
See all Example Sentences for cellmate
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cellmate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Cellmate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cellmate. Accessed 27 Jul. 2024.
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