jail

1 of 2

noun

1
: a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
specifically : such a place under the jurisdiction of a local government (such as a county) for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or those convicted of minor crimes compare prison
2
: confinement in a jail
sentenced to jail

jail

2 of 2

verb

jailed; jailing; jails

transitive verb

: to confine in or as if in a jail

Examples of jail in a Sentence

Noun He was locked up in the county jail. He was arrested and sent to jail. He went to jail for his crimes. He just got out of jail a few weeks ago. He was kept in jail overnight. Verb threatened to jail the punks if they so much as jaywalked
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The people who spent so much that Nathan had to go away to Lana jail? Charlotte Walsh, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2024 Narcotics are sold at a staggering markup in the county jails. Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024 Santa Rita is the county’s only adult jail facility and has been the subject of plenty of controversy over the years, mostly involving jail deaths or the treatment of mentally ill inmates. Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024 The 17-year-old has been charged as an adult and is being held without bond at the county jail, police said. Jasmine Hilton, Washington Post, 13 Mar. 2024 Higgins thought a different approach was needed given the issues plaguing the Arkansas detention facility and the jail's poor living conditions, where inmates can spend upwards of 23 hours a day in their cells. Corin Cesaric, Peoplemag, 13 Mar. 2024 He has been held in federal jails since his arrest in fall 2021. Ali Winston, WIRED, 13 Mar. 2024 The deputies who assisted at the Vista jail are Cpl. Caleb Lunetta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Mar. 2024 The jail began housing inmates in 1882, but was immobilized in the 1930s after some of them sustained some gruesome injuries. The Indianapolis Star, 12 Mar. 2024
Verb
Putin’s increasingly repressive regime has jailed critics while opposition leaders such as Navalny, Boris Nemtsov and others have been killed, jailed or have fled Russia. Robyn Dixon, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 With most opposition candidates either dead, jailed, exiled, barred from running or simply token figures, a victory for Putin, who has in effect been Russia’s head of state since before the turn of the century, is all but guaranteed. Christian Edwards, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024 The film uses a collage of 2D animation and family archives to tell the story of a girl who for 15 years suffered abuse at the hands of a priest who was jailed and subsequently set free. Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024 He was briefly jailed on charges of adultery, but the charges were quickly dropped for lack of evidence. Alex Williams, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2024 State police said two suspects are currently jailed on unrelated charges. Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 27 Feb. 2024 Those jailed were charged with impeding traffic, inciting a riot and assaulting a police officer. Mary Ramsey, Charlotte Observer, 27 Feb. 2024 Eventually, the Biden administration traded Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was jailed in the U.S., for Griner. Yuliya Talmazan, NBC News, 27 Feb. 2024 The number of people wrongly jailed in our country appalls and angers him. Ian Frazier, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English jaiole, from Anglo-French gaiole, jaiole, from Late Latin caveola, diminutive of Latin cavea cage — more at cage

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1604, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of jail was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near jail

Cite this Entry

“Jail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jail. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

jail

noun
ˈjā(ə)l
: prison
jail verb

Legal Definition

jail

noun
: a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody
specifically : such a place under the jurisdiction of a local government (as a county) for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or those convicted of minor crimes compare house of correction, house of detention, lockup, penitentiary, prison
jail transitive verb

More from Merriam-Webster on jail

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