the hoosegow

noun

US, informal + humorous
: prison or jail
The cops threatened to throw him in the hoosegow.

Examples of the hoosegow in a Sentence

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The person crumbles to the ground and gets hauled off to the hoosegow. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026

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“The hoosegow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20hoosegow. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

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