1
as in jail
a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
the ongoing debate whether drug users should go to prison
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in captivity
the act of confining or the state of being confined
the view that prison does nothing to cure the criminal—if anything, it makes him worse
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of prison
In 2013, Skakel was released from prison after a Superior Court judge vacated the sentence, ruling that his lawyer failed to adequately represent him at trial.
—
Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025
Bush commuted Libby’s 30-month prison sentence but refused Cheney’s request to pardon him.
—Susan Page, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
The proposal defines grooming and sets prison sentences of 10 to 25 years for those convicted.
—Molly Beck, jsonline.com, 4 Nov. 2025
Robin’s Nest has a partnership with the nonprofit dedicated to freeing the innocent from prison.
—Regina Elling, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prison
Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2025
Bush commuted Libby’s 30-month prison sentence but refused Cheney’s request to pardon him.
—Susan Page, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
The proposal defines grooming and sets prison sentences of 10 to 25 years for those convicted.
—Molly Beck, jsonline.com, 4 Nov. 2025
Robin’s Nest has a partnership with the nonprofit dedicated to freeing the innocent from prison.
—Regina Elling, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prison
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prison
Noun
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Moore said that while any and all legal options will be considered, the group's main focus will be on advocacy for pretrial services and other programming that can keep people out of jail.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
3 Nov. 2025
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The amendment would reallocate $570,965 from the capital budget for camera replacements at the Criminal Justice Facility, which houses the county jail.—
Claudia Levens,
jsonline.com,
3 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Most of the people here have already paid the ransoms demanded and been released from captivity in the Sahara.—
Mick Krever,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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By late January, the last four escapees were recaptured after being lured back into captivity by peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, his crooked sidekick, Robertson, BOP # 21731-509, is locked up in another good-time penitentiary in Beckley, WV.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
29 Oct. 2025
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Portlaoise Prison, which is in the center of Ireland, is a nineteenth-century penitentiary built like a fortress—a one-star establishment, at best.—
Ed Caesar,
New Yorker,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Decades after the Haradas’ legal victory, the family was forced to leave their home on Lemon Street, and they were sent to a World War II internment camp.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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Critiques from the American right, which lament the film’s timely depictions of a police state, immigrant internment camps and leftist revolt, read like ChatGPT essays programmed to write in the voice of Karen.—
Mikey O'Connell,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The charges carry a maximum penalty of 68 months’ imprisonment and $200,000 in fines.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
7 Nov. 2025
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Was Hsieh’s self-imprisonment a statement on mass incarceration or prison reform?—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The mass arrests in 1909 are an early example of police tactics that contribute to the disproportionate incarceration of Black people, a trend that continues today.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Kitzing’s brother wrote to them throughout their incarceration, according to historical records.—
Kate Sosin,
Them.,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Anderson was sentenced to three months in prison and three months of home confinement.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
4 Nov. 2025
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As the two keepers' accelerating madness batters their already uneasy relationship, the film becomes a phantasmagorical endurance test, with the two antagonistic leads hurling themselves against their tight confinement.—
Dennis Perkins,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prison.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prison. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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