prison

noun

ˈpri-zᵊn How to pronounce prison (audio)
Definition of prisonnext
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of prison Declonius Peck, its beloved editor-in-chief, has gone to prison for embezzlement, and his evil twin, Salton, has assumed management of the family business, along with the 39 editors who curate the periodical. — Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026 For Iranian directors, prison is a real risk, and Mohammad Rasoulof is among those who have served time. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 13 Oct. 2026 Following the jury's verdict, a superior court judge sentenced Williams to 40 years, with the first 35 in prison and the rest on probation. — Dan Raby, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026 Davis faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. — ABC News, 13 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for prison
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prison
  1. jail
  2. captivity
  3. penitentiary
  4. internment
  5. imprisonment
  6. incarceration
  7. confinement
Noun
  • As an alternative to jail time, the federal prosecutors suggested a year of probation, 100 hours of community service and a $1,000 fine.
    — Julia Coin, Charlotte Observer, 7 Oct. 2026
  • With O’Hare at the helm, the county has redistricted, gone from meeting four times to once a month, privatized rent and utility assistance, reduced the number of polling locations, and seen a steady stream of jail inmate deaths continue.
    — Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of jail
Noun
  • Rescue tells the story of Roro, a Yemeni mother of young children fighting to reunite her family after a Mediterranean rescue operation left her separated from her husband and held in captivity in Libya.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Even more surprisingly, the 24-year-old doe that lived in captivity in Kerr Wildlife Management Area actually birthed a fawn in her final year.
    — Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of captivity
Noun
  • Mexico has 276 prisons, including 14 federal penitentiaries and 249 state prisons.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Prisoners from this penitentiary were enlisted to help build the state’s capitol building just a few miles away in downtown Boise.
    — Mindy Sink, Denver Post, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of penitentiary
Noun
  • Adding to the dark absurdity of the situation was the fact that Seghers’s husband, the Hungarian Marxist scholar László Radványi, was being held in a French internment camp, on the basis that Hungary was a German ally.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • At the exhibition’s press opening, curator Cindy Kang talked about trying to dispel the idea that internment was an isolated incident that these artists then moved on from.
    — Robert Sullivan, Vogue, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of internment
Noun
  • Douglas details his volatile relationship with his late father, Kirk Douglas, his son Cameron’s addiction and imprisonment and the Stage 4 cancer diagnosis that forced him to confront his own mortality.
    — Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026
  • One of those Americans was punched, subjected to electric shocks and forced to eat his own vomit during eight months of imprisonment, the indictment says.
    — Philip Marcelo, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of imprisonment
Noun
  • The entry is paired with a suite of portraits of a number of Black men and women wearing MooreWraps, versatile multi-wear garments created by Moore’s sister with proceeds donated to victims of domestic violence and incarceration.
    — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Before his incarceration, Magaña managed to keep his mental health struggles mostly contained with medication for years, Alejandra said.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of incarceration
Noun
  • Alas, Hersh was to miss the flight because he was still being held hostage, starving, tortured, and surviving on that date in terrifying confinement.
    — Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Time, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Diamantis’ lawyer had asked for a period of home confinement.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of confinement

Browse Nearby Words

prismatic
prison
prison camp
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Cite this Entry

“Prison.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prison. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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