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
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Recent Examples of jails
Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2026
He was taken to the ICE detention facility in Broadview and eventually transferred to other jails in several states, where he was denied access to heart medication over more than two months while in custody, according to his declaration.
—Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 13 May 2026
Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said last month that the law has perhaps had unintended consequences for already crowded jails.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 13 May 2026
Instead of only looking to convert warehouses into immigration detention facilities, Mullin said DHS is exploring use of county jails as well as shuttered state and local facilities that can be purchased, repaired and brought online more quickly.
—Nicole Sganga, CBS News, 13 May 2026
The Obama administration, for instance, relied heavily on these types of arrests, where undocumented immigrants are transferred from jails and prisons to ICE custody and then deported.
—Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 12 May 2026
Under a law passed in 2019, the complex of jails must close by 2027, a timeline now widely acknowledged as impossible.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 11 May 2026
In 2022, 19 people died in Riverside County jails, making them among the deadliest in the nation.
—Hailey Wang, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2026
It was not considered controversial when the Obama administration placed immigration enforcement officials in county jails to coordinate the removal of individuals convicted of serious crimes, so that same level of cooperation should not be controversial today.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 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
As a result, families are struggling with the rising cost of living, limited access to county services, unsafe conditions in county jails, and aging infrastructure that has not been maintained.
—Eleanor Dearman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2026
He was taken to the ICE detention facility in Broadview and eventually transferred to other jails in several states, where he was denied access to heart medication over more than two months while in custody, according to his declaration.
—Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 13 May 2026
Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said last month that the law has perhaps had unintended consequences for already crowded jails.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 13 May 2026
Instead of only looking to convert warehouses into immigration detention facilities, Mullin said DHS is exploring use of county jails as well as shuttered state and local facilities that can be purchased, repaired and brought online more quickly.
—Nicole Sganga, CBS News, 13 May 2026
The Obama administration, for instance, relied heavily on these types of arrests, where undocumented immigrants are transferred from jails and prisons to ICE custody and then deported.
—Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 12 May 2026
Under a law passed in 2019, the complex of jails must close by 2027, a timeline now widely acknowledged as impossible.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 11 May 2026
In 2022, 19 people died in Riverside County jails, making them among the deadliest in the nation.
—Hailey Wang, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2026
It was not considered controversial when the Obama administration placed immigration enforcement officials in county jails to coordinate the removal of individuals convicted of serious crimes, so that same level of cooperation should not be controversial today.
—David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 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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Five men, all with histories of being in and out of state and federal prisons, would be implicated in the gold caper and hit with other charges in the 2010s.—
Jay Weaver
May 14,
Miami Herald,
14 May 2026
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Speculation about the property’s future has lingered since the federal prisons bureau announced FCI Dublin’s closure in 2024, amid a torrent of lawsuits by past and current inmates claiming years of systemic abuse at the hands of the prison’s staff.—
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
14 May 2026
Verb
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But such judgments often come from a place of distance—from people who have never lived under a theocracy that imprisons, tortures, and kills with impunity.—
Nazanin Boniadi,
Time,
11 Mar. 2026
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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
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
Verb
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Today, Rikers incarcerates approximately sixty-seven hundred people—most of whom are in pretrial detention, others who are serving terms of less than a year—in facilities that are within New York City while also being out of sight and largely out of reach.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Jails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jails. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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