as in prisons
a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
sentenced to three years in jail for his crime
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in imprisons
to put in or as if in prison
threatened to jail the punks if they so much as jaywalked
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of jails
Sharon Chin, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The analysis by the Deportation Data Project at UC Berkeley found that ICE arrests more than quadrupled in that period, with transfers from jails and prisons roughly doubling.
—Daniella Silva, NBC news, 8 Apr. 2026
Last year, the number of noncitizens transferred from San Diego County jails to federal immigration custody nearly tripled, from 30 to 83, largely due to federal authorities increasing their use of judicial warrants.
—Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2026
Staff provided therapy, addiction treatment, support and services to 48,000 people at treatment facilities, schools, jails and elsewhere.
—Grant Stringer, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
That includes local jails, which are sometimes used to hold immigrants, too.
—Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 3 Apr. 2026
In 2023, the number dropped significantly, even as supervision failures within jails persisted, down to 63.
—Ryan Oehrli
april 1, Charlotte Observer, 1 Apr. 2026
An overnight census in January found just 93 homeless people in the city — the lowest count since 1997 — but critics say the city is simply pushing people into jails and onto streets elsewhere in Miami-Dade County.
—Aaron Leibowitz, Miami Herald, 1 Apr. 2026
Lucas Finton covers crime, policing, jails, the courts and criminal justice policy for The Commercial Appeal.
—Lucas Finton, Memphis Commercial Appeal, 30 Mar. 2026
Monroe Trombly, Louisville Courier Journal, 24 Feb. 2026
China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2026
The regime that jails children also profits from drugs, human trafficking, and online scams.
—Kim Aris, Time, 7 Nov. 2025
Noun
Trail takes the free workshops to about 500 people a year, mostly on campuses, community centers, and jails in the Bay Area and across the nation.
—Sharon Chin, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The analysis by the Deportation Data Project at UC Berkeley found that ICE arrests more than quadrupled in that period, with transfers from jails and prisons roughly doubling.
—Daniella Silva, NBC news, 8 Apr. 2026
Last year, the number of noncitizens transferred from San Diego County jails to federal immigration custody nearly tripled, from 30 to 83, largely due to federal authorities increasing their use of judicial warrants.
—Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2026
Staff provided therapy, addiction treatment, support and services to 48,000 people at treatment facilities, schools, jails and elsewhere.
—Grant Stringer, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
That includes local jails, which are sometimes used to hold immigrants, too.
—Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 3 Apr. 2026
In 2023, the number dropped significantly, even as supervision failures within jails persisted, down to 63.
—Ryan Oehrli
april 1, Charlotte Observer, 1 Apr. 2026
An overnight census in January found just 93 homeless people in the city — the lowest count since 1997 — but critics say the city is simply pushing people into jails and onto streets elsewhere in Miami-Dade County.
—Aaron Leibowitz, Miami Herald, 1 Apr. 2026
Lucas Finton covers crime, policing, jails, the courts and criminal justice policy for The Commercial Appeal.
—Lucas Finton, Memphis Commercial Appeal, 30 Mar. 2026
Verb
The facility is one of 11 Kentucky jails that contract with ICE to detain people.
—Monroe Trombly, Louisville Courier Journal, 24 Feb. 2026
China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2026
The regime that jails children also profits from drugs, human trafficking, and online scams.
—Kim Aris, Time, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jails
Noun
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Most of the candidates’ pledges, such as tackling unaffordability, reducing gas prices, increasing capacity in state prisons, protecting gun owners’ rights and keeping trans athletes out of girls’ locker rooms, are nearly identical.—
Seema Mehta,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The analysis by the Deportation Data Project at UC Berkeley found that ICE arrests more than quadrupled in that period, with transfers from jails and prisons roughly doubling.—
Daniella Silva,
NBC news,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Belarus now imprisons 28 journalists as President Lukashenko intensifies a crackdown on press freedom.—
Yuras Karmanau,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Afwerki routinely imprisons his critics and political opponents and has implemented a policy of indefinite mandatory military and national service for residents, which human-rights watchdogs say amounts to slavery.—
Zak Cheney-Rice,
Vulture,
6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Behind bars in state penitentiaries in Gatesville and Marlin, Mejia felt forgotten.—
Emiliano Tahui Gómez,
Austin American Statesman,
17 Mar. 2026
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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
Cite this Entry
“Jails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jails. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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