as in jails
a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
told harrowing stories of his years spent in the big house
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Recent Examples of big houses
Thank goodness for wealthy people and their big houses.
—
Ray Mark Rinaldi, Denver Post, 7 Dec. 2025
Ray Mark Rinaldi, Denver Post, 7 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for big houses
Noun
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There have also been fewer inmate deaths in Tarrant County than in Dallas and Harris counties, although those county jails have more capacity — 7,552 beds in Dallas County and 10,466 beds in Harris County, the report shows.—
Matthew Adams,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
13 Feb. 2026
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North Carolina legislators accurately portrayed a gap between how many people Immigration and Customs Enforcement picked up from Mecklenburg and Wake County jails through much of 2025.—
Mary Ramsey,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The wave of prison violence is happening despite the deployment of military and police forces in several penitentiaries.—
Michael Rios,
CNN Money,
8 Dec. 2025
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After his conviction, Gray was sent to Angola, one of the most violent penitentiaries in the country at the time.—
Richard A. Webster,
ProPublica,
25 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Iraq's National Center for International Judicial Cooperation said 5,704 suspects from 61 countries who were affiliated with IS were transferred from prisons in Syria.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
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Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyer, David Oscar Markus, says mounting media campaigns from federal prisons is hardly as simple as buying a ring light and pressing record.—
Andrew Zucker,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Big houses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/big%20houses. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
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