1
: a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
specifically
: such a place under the jurisdiction of a local government (such as a county) for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or those convicted of minor crimes compare prison
2
: confinement in a jail
sentenced to jail
Examples of jail in a Sentence
Noun
He was locked up in the county jail.
He was arrested and sent to jail.
He went to jail for his crimes.
He just got out of jail a few weeks ago.
He was kept in jail overnight.
Verb
threatened to jail the punks if they so much as jaywalked
Recent Examples on the Web
Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2025
The 12 were sentenced over the last year to jail or prison in what the Michigan Attorney General's Office dubbed a large-scale criminal organization responsible for the thefts of hundreds of vehicles throughout six counties in the region and state.
—Christina Hall, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2025
Rick Barrett, jsonline.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Another man was jailed in July for voicing support for the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah on social media.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jail
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Noun
The gag order comes after Drummond gave an interview to a media outlet from jail.
—Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2025
The 12 were sentenced over the last year to jail or prison in what the Michigan Attorney General's Office dubbed a large-scale criminal organization responsible for the thefts of hundreds of vehicles throughout six counties in the region and state.
—Christina Hall, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2025
Verb
Some unauthorized immigrants in Abbotsford would rather self-deport than risk being jailed and forcefully returned to their native country.
—Rick Barrett, jsonline.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Another man was jailed in July for voicing support for the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah on social media.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jail
Cite this Entry
“Jail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jail. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
jail
noun
: a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
specifically
: such a place under the jurisdiction of a local government (as a county) for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or those convicted of minor crimes compare house of correction, house of detention, lockup, penitentiary, prison
jail
transitive verb
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