jail

1 of 2

noun

ˈjāl 

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

Synonyms

Noun

• bastille
• big house [slang]
• bridewell
• brig
• calaboose
• can
• clink [slang]
• cooler
• coop
• guardroom
• hock
• hold
• hoosegow
• jailhouse
• joint [slang]
• jug
• lockup
• nick [British slang]
• pen
• penitentiary
• pokey [slang]
• prison
• quod [British slang]
• slam
• slammer
• stir [slang]
• stockade
• tolbooth [Scottish]

Verb

• commit
• confine
• immure
• imprison
• incarcerate
• intern
• jug
• lock (up)

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

Police departments in those jurisdictions generally do not help ICE carry out street-level arrests, and jails will not hold immigration violators charged with traffic offenses, or in some cases violent felonies. —Nick Miroff The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 8 Dec. 2024

But Penny may never even spend a minute in jail for taking another man’s life. —Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 8 Dec. 2024

Verb

That includes the men and women in the Justice Department who fought valiantly to jail Trump for numerous crimes. —Mark R. Weaver, Newsweek, 3 Dec. 2024

Officer Herman Means was jailed Tuesday in Johnson County on preliminary domestic battery and strangulation charges following an investigation by Whiteland police. —Sarah Nelson, The Indianapolis Star, 27 Nov. 2024

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

Phrases Containing jail

• left to rot in jail/prison

Kids Definition

jail

noun

ˈjā(ə)l

: prison

jail verb

Legal Definition

jail

noun

ˈjāl 

: 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