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
Synonyms
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
Alex Golden, Axios, 21 Oct. 2024
Anyone who is found guilty of violating the ordinance, if approved, would face a misdemeanor and may be fined up to $500 and face up to 90 days in jail.
—Dana Afana, Detroit Free Press, 19 Oct. 2024
Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA TODAY, 18 Oct. 2024
For the past few decades, several South Korean authors have been bruited about as contenders for the Nobel Prize in Literature, notably the poet Ko Un and the novelist Hwang Sok-yong, elder statesmen who were both previously jailed for political activism.
—Ed Park, The Atlantic, 12 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for jail 
Noun
He was sentenced to 89 days in jail, 32 hours of public service and ordered to pay $820 in fees and fines.
—Alex Golden, Axios, 21 Oct. 2024
Anyone who is found guilty of violating the ordinance, if approved, would face a misdemeanor and may be fined up to $500 and face up to 90 days in jail.
—Dana Afana, Detroit Free Press, 19 Oct. 2024
Verb
Italian citizens jailed for a procedure that's completely legal in other countries, the U.S. included.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA TODAY, 18 Oct. 2024
For the past few decades, several South Korean authors have been bruited about as contenders for the Nobel Prize in Literature, notably the poet Ko Un and the novelist Hwang Sok-yong, elder statesmen who were both previously jailed for political activism.
—Ed Park, The Atlantic, 12 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for jail
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.
Dictionary Entries Near jail
Cite this Entry
“Jail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jail. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLegal 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
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