Prison

  

Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.

Prison

Definition: Prison

Prison

Noun

1. A correctional institution where persons are confined while on trial or for punishment.

2. A prisonlike situation; a place of seeming confinement.

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "prison" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references)

 

Specialty Definition: Prison

DomainDefinition

Satire

PRISON, n. A place of punishments and rewards. The poet assures us that -- "Stone walls do not a prison make," but a combination of the stone wall, the political parasite and the moral instructor is no garden of sweets. Source: Devil's Dictionary.

Bible

Prison The first occasion on which we read of a prison is in the history of Joseph in Egypt. Then Potiphar, "Joseph's master, took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound" (Gen. 39:20-23). The Heb. word here used (sohar) means properly a round tower or fortress. It seems to have been a part of Potiphar's house, a place in which state prisoners were kept. The Mosaic law made no provision for imprisonment as a punishment. In the wilderness two persons were "put in ward" (Lev. 24:12; Num. 15:34), but it was only till the mind of God concerning them should be ascertained. Prisons and prisoners are mentioned in the book of Psalms (69:33; 79:11; 142:7). Samson was confined in a Philistine prison (Judg. 16:21, 25). In the subsequent history of Israel frequent references are made to prisons (1 Kings 22:27; 2 Kings 17:4; 25:27, 29; 2 Chr. 16:10; Isa. 42:7; Jer. 32:2). Prisons seem to have been common in New Testament times (Matt. 11:2; 25:36, 43). The apostles were put into the "common prison" at the instance of the Jewish council (Acts 5:18, 23; 8:3); and at Philippi Paul and Silas were thrust into the "inner prison" (16:24; comp. 4:3; 12:4, 5). Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary.

Dream Interpretation

To dream of a prison, is the forerunner of misfortune in every instance, if it encircles your friends, or yourself.
To see any one dismissed from prison, denotes that you will finally overcome misfortune. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted ....

Multilingual Slang

Hungarian (sitt ). (references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Specialty Definition: Prison

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

A prison or penitentiary or jail (in British English, sometimes spelled gaol) comprises a building or system used to hold persons convicted of crimes.

Undergoing punishment though a prison sentence has the colloquial name of "doing time". Synonyms of "prison" include "hoosegow", "clink" and "lockup".

Prisons in the United States

As of 2003, the United States prison population is the world's largest in absolute numbers according to available statistics. It is second largest in relative numbers to Rwanda, where as of 2002, over 100,000 people where held on suspicion of participation in the 1994 genocide. No data is available for North Korea. [1]

The large prison population in the US results primarily from high crime rates, long sentences, and a rigidly fought "War on Drugs". Some observers have gone so far as to accuse the United States of deliberately developing the legal system and the prison industry as a means of social control (a conspiracy theory).

In recent years, debate about prisons in the United States has focused on the pros and cons of the privatization of prisons. The argument for privatization stresses cost reduction, whereas the arguments against it focus on standards of care, and the question of whether a market economy for prisons might not also lead to a market demand for prisoners (that is, a strong lobby for ever-tougher sentencing to satisfy the need for cheap labor). While privatized prisons have only a short history, inmates in state- and federal-run prisons also undertake active employment in prison for low pay.

Many observers generally regard prison conditions in the United States as problematic, with prisoner violence and rape wide-spread and medical care for inmates inadequate. Gang violence has recently become a major problem, since many gang members retain their affiliations when incarcerated for various crimes. An August 2003 Harper's article by Wil S. Hylton estimated that "somewhere between 20 and 40 percent of American prisoners are, at this very moment, infected with hepatitis C". Prisons may outsource medical care to private companies such as Correctional Medical Services, which, according to Hylton's research, try to minimize the amount of care given to prisoners in order to maximize profits.

Private companies which provide services to prisons combine in the American Correctional Association. Their lobbying arm, ALEC, advocates legislation favorable to the industry.

Prisons may specialize exclusively in male or in female prisoners, or have separate departments for each sex.

List of prisons

List of Prison Corporations

See also: private prisons, United Kingdom prison population, penal colony

Further Reading

External Links

Top     



Prison sexuality

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Prison sexuality deals with sexual relationships between confined individuals. Since prisons are separated by sex this means a same-sex partner, often in contradiction to a person's normal social sexual orientation.

Prison sexuality, usually thought of as non-homosexual or situationally-homosexual, shows quite similar dominance traits to those of the apes, creating similar relationship structures. Similar animal-based behaviours are widely understood as being part of human nature, and hence sexual relationships tend to follow universal archetypes, which manifest themselves in all aspects of human culture and behaviour.

In many cases among men, the insertive partner is not viewed as being gay, and the receptive partner (who may not be consenting) is called a woman, or a "punk." In the United States in particular, rape in prisons is a major problem, and may be perpetuated by inmates who do not see themselves as homosexual. A man who has been raped, or who has had receptive intercourse, is often seen as less masculine and hence a target for future rape and other violence.

Among men, the receptive partner may be protected by the insertive partner from fights etc, and some heterosexuals enter relationships for this purpose, or to restrict the number of men they must sleep with.

The incidence of hepatitis in prisons is very high, though this may be due to inmates having used intravenous illegal drugs before arrest, rather than due to sexual behavior.

See also Human sexual behavior

This article is still in its infancy. You can help Wikipedia by causing it to grow.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Prison sexuality."

Top     

Synonym: Prison

Synonym: prison house (n). (additional references)

Top     

Synonyms within Context: Prison

ContextSynonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).

Disclosure

Divulge, reveal, break; squeal, tattle, sing, rat, snitch; let into the secret; reveal the secrets of the prison house; tell; (inform); breathe, utter, blab, peach; let out, let fall, let drop, let slip, spill the beans, let the cat out of the bag; betray; tell tales, come out of school; come out with; give vent, give utterance to; open the lips, blurt out, vent, whisper about; speak out; (make manifest); make public; unriddle; (find out) a; split.

Escape

Elude; make off; (avoid); march off; (go away); give one the slip; slip through the hands, slip through the fingers; slip the collar, wriggle out of prison, break out, break loose, break loose from prison; break away, slip away, get away; find vent, find a hole to creep out of.

Inclosure

Barrier, barricade; gate, gateway; bent, dingle; door, hatch, cordon; prison.

Liberation

Gain one's liberty, obtain one's liberty, acquire one's liberty; get rid of, get clear of; deliver oneself from; shake off the yoke, slip the collar; break loose, break prison; tear asunder one's bonds, cast off trammels; escape.

Prison

Noun: prison, prison house; jail, gaol, cage, coop, den, cell; stronghold, fortress, keep, donjon, dungeon, Bastille, oubliette, bridewell, house of correction, hulks, tollbooth, panopticon, penitentiary, guardroom, lockup, hold; round house, watch house, station house, sponging house; station; house of detention, black hole, pen, fold, pound; inclosure; isolation (exclusion); penal settlement, penal colony; bilboes, stocks, limbo, quod; calaboose, chauki, choky, thana; workhouse.

Prisoner

Adjective: imprisoned; in prison, in quod, in durance vile, in limbo, in custody, doing time, in charge, in chains; under lock and key, under hatches; on parole.

Refuge

Noun: refuge, sanctuary, retreat, fastness; acropolis; keep, last resort; ward; prison; asylum, ark, home,Noun: refuge, sanctuary, retreat, fastness; acropolis; keep, last resort; ward; prison; asylum, ark, home, refuge for the destitute; almshouse; hiding place; (ambush); sanctum sanctorum; (privacy).

Restraint

Confine; shut up, shut in; clap up, lock up, box up, mew up, bottle up, cork up, seal up, button up; hem in, bolt in, wall in, rail in; impound, pen, coop; inclose; (circumscribe); cage; incage, encage; close the door upon, cloister; imprison, immure; incarcerate, entomb; clap under hatches, lay under hatches; put in irons, put in a strait-waistcoat; throw into prison, cast into prison; put into bilboes.

Arrest; take up, take charge of, take into custody; take prisoner, take captive, make prisoner, make captive; captivate; lead captive, lead into captivity; send to prison, commit to prison; commit; give in charge, give in custody; subjugate.

Secret

Noun: secret; dead secret, profound secret; arcanum, mystery; latency; Asian mystery; sealed book, secrets of the prison house; le desous des cartes.

Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

Top     

Crosswords: Prison

English words defined with "prison": prison chaplain, Prison house, Prison limits, prison term, Prison van, Prison yardstate prison. (references)
Specialty definitions using "prison": Adonis of 50, ANGLING FOR FARTHINGS, Arcite, assistance to prisonersBlack Hole of Calcutta, BOARDING SCHOOL, Bridge of SighsCHEQUER INN, CHUM, correction officer, CORRECTION OFFICER, HEAD, counselor, vocational rehabilitatioDebtFAIR, farms and garden centre, Fernando Florestan, Fleet Book Evidence, Flint JackGlossin, group quartersHarapha, HOLMESIEKATERINOGRADSK, inmate crewJoncs, JOSEPHKING'S HEAD INNLavalette, Leonora, Levellers, LIMBO, LOB'S POUND, looking, Ludgate, Lud's BulwarkMachaerus, MAIL CENSOR, MarcellinaNational Exhibition, Nebushasban, Nergal-sharezer, Newgate KnockerOlympian Jove, OpiatePATROL CONDUCTOR, Paulina, Philoxenos of Cythera, PRISONER-CLASSIFICATION INTERVIEWERQUEER BIRDS, QUEER KENScience Persecuted, Scullabogue Massacre, self-enumerating place, services for prisoners, SHERIFF, DEPUTY, SHERIFF'S HOTEL, Speaking Heads, special place, Spunging House, STONE JUG, SUPERINTENDENT, INDUSTRIES, CORRECTIONAL FACILITYType of institutionVOCATIONAL REHABILITATION COUNSELORWalls have Ears, WHISTLING SHOP. (references)
Etymologies containing "prison": Lobspound. (references)
Non-English Usage: "Prison" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses.

French (can, cell, clink, gaol, hatch, hock, internment, jail, lock up, Nick, penitentiary, prison, slammer), Papiamen (gaol, prison).

Top     

Modern Usage: Prison

DomainUsage

Screenplays

This is a maximum security prison, and you have no weapons of any kind (Alien³; writing credit: Dan O'Bannon; Ronald Shusett)

No prison there is a difference (Double Jeopardy; writing credit: David Weisberg; Douglas Cook)

Prison life consists of routine, and then more routine (The Shawshank Redemption; writing credit: Frank Darabont)

I belong in a maximum security prison for men (A Pyromaniac's Love Story; writing credit: Morgan Ward)

There I was in prison. And one day I help a couple of older gentlemen make some free telephone calls (Sneakers; writing credit: Phil Alden Robinson, Lawrence Lasker, and Walter F. Parkes.)

Lyrics

I once thopught of love as a prison a place I didn't want to be. (Love in the First Degree; performing artist: Alabama; writing credit: Jim Hurt and Tim DuBois)

When passion's a prison, you can't break free (You Give Love a Bad Name; performing artist: Bon Jovi)

One could end up going to prison (Only In America; performing artist: Brooks & Dunn)

He was only ten years old when his daddy died in prison. (Coward of the County; performing artist: Kenny Rogers)

The rusted chains of prison moons (THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING; performing artist: King Crimson)

Clever

Two men looked out of prison bars: One saw mud, and the other saw stars. (references; author: unknown)

Before you can break out of prison, you must realize that you are locked up. (references; author: unknown)

Movie/TV Titles

Girl's Prison (1970)

The Prison Community (1965)

Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959)

Girls in Prison (1956)

La Joyeuse prison (1956)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Commercial Usage: Prison

DomainTitle

Books

  • Punishment and Civilization: The Acceptability of Prison in Modern Society (reference)

  • From pulpit to prison : the Paul Carlin story (reference)

  • Furlough from prison (reference)

  • Prison Furlough and Work Release: A Bibliography (Public Administration Series--Bibliography, P-2827) (reference)

  • The English Bastille: a history of Newgate Gaol and prison conditions in Britain, 1188-1902 (reference)

    (more book examples)

  

Periodicals

  

Theater & Movies

  

Music

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Image Slideshow: Prison

Photos:
Prison

More pictures...

Illustrations:
Prison

More pictures...

Computer Images:
Prison

More pictures...

Top     

Photo Album: Prison

ThumbnailDescription & CreditThumbnailDescription & Credit

The infamous Bilibid Prison Some Coast Surveyors were incarcerated here by the Japanese in WWII. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection.

Marching the prisoners at Bilibid Prison Some Coast Surveyors were incarcerated here by the Japanese in WWII. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection.

Sleeping quarters at the prison at Isla Gorgona. Credit: Small World.

The dining quarters at the prison at Isla Gorgona. Credit: Small World.

Edmond Pope (center), the American businessman convicted of spying by the Russian government, arrived at Ramstein Air base, Germany, Dec. 14 following his release from prison. The 54-year-old retired Navy officer was to receive a medical evaluation at ne.

Santo Tomas Prison Hospital, Manila, P.I. : Woman washing her hair at one of the two bath tubs in camp. Credit: National Library of Medicine.

[A PHS physician and a nurse stand at the entrance to the caged area at a prison facility]. Credit: National Library of Medicine.

Passing Alcatraz prison, San Francisco Bay, California, during the 1930s. Hand-colored photograph. Credit: NAVY.

At Portsmouth, New Hampshire, circa 1908, while serving as prison ship there. Note laundry drying in her rigging, forward. Credit: NAVY.

Passmore Williamson, in Moyamensing Prison for alledged contempt of court. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Top     

Digital Photo Gallery: Prison
 

"Preschool prison" by Annie Andre
Commentary: "This was a picture of my son in his preschools play yard. He looks like he's in prison with the bars and the striped shirt."
"Mt St Michelle - Inside the ab" by Denis R.
Commentary: "This is like an elevator to move food to the prison (when the abbey was a prison), this in mont saint michelle. <br> <br>Sorry, no a real big resolution."

Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers.

Top     

Sounds Captioned with "Prison".

PlayCaption
Clink; jail; prison; behind bars; locked up; lock up; lock down; incarceration; incarcerated; Bastille; big cage; big house; big school; black hole; booby hatch; brig; bull pen; caboose; cage; calaboose; can; cell; cooler; coop; county hotel; death house.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Familiar Quotations: Prison

AuthorQuotation

Epictetus

Wherever anyone is against his will that is to him a prison.

Epicurus

58. We must release ourselves from the prison of affairs and politics.

Henry David Thoreau

Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison.

Peter Ustinov

Once we are destined to live out our lives in the prison of our mind, our duty is to furnish it well.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

The martyr cannot be dishonored. Every lash inflicted is a tongue of fame; every prison a more illustrious abode.

Richard Lovelace

Stone walls do not a prison make nor iron bars a cage; minds innocent and quiet take that for an hermitage.

Shaw

Home is the girl's prison and the woman's workhouse.

Sir Edwin Arnold

Within yourself deliverance must be searched for, because each man makes his own prison.

Victor Hugo

He who opens a school door, closes a prison.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Top     

Historic Usage: Prison

AuthorDateQuotation

Communist Manifesto

1848

Prison Reform: for the benefit of the working class. (reference)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Top     

Use in Literature: Prison

TitleAuthorQuote

Scarlet Letter

Hawthorne, Nathaniel

And never had Hester Prynne appeared more ladylike, in the antique interpretation of the term, than as she issued from the prison.

Les Miserables

Hugo, Victor

The evening before the day fixed for the execution of the condemned, the almoner of the prison fell ill.

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Joyce, James

The particular judgment was over and the soul had passed to the abode of bliss or to the prison of purgatory or had been hurled howling into hell

Grapes of Wrath

Steinbeck, John

And they stood apart and watched him secretly, the great brother who had killed a man and been in prison.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Top     

Non-Fiction Usage: Prison

SubjectTopicQuote

Health

The majority of offenders involved with the criminal justice system are not in prison but are under community supervision. (references)

As might be expected, treatment gains can be lost if inmates are returned to the general prison population after treatment. (references)

Naltrexone has also been found to be successful in preventing relapse by former opiate addicts released from prison on probation. (references)

Business

However, he remains in prison. (references)

Frequently, prisoners exercise authority within a prison, displacing prison officials. (references)

Overcrowding and corruption within the prison system results in mixing of these groups. (references)

Children

Brazil

Homicide is the leading cause of death for children aged 10 to 14, and only 1.9 percent of murderers are serving prison sentences. (references)

Korea

Revisions also include increased penalties for convicted child abusers, who would face up to 5 years in prison (compared to the previous 2 years) for child abuse. (references)

Kenya

Men convicted of rape normally receive prison sentences of between 5 and 20 years, plus several strokes of the cane. (references)

Civil Liberties

Burma

The Paris-based organization Reporters Sans Frontieres reports that there were 13 journalists in prison during the year, including novelist and journalist San San Nweh, who was imprisoned in 1994 for a 10-year-term for passing information regarding human rights violations to international reporters and U.N. observers. (references)

Jamaica

Rastafarians have no right to prison visits by Rastafarian clergy. (references)

Uzbekistan

In all three cities, the police appeared to have had advance knowledge of the protests and briefly detained the protesters, who were relatives of the alleged Hizb ut-Tahrir members in prison. (references)

Economic History

Malaysia

In April 1999, he was convicted of four counts of corruption and sentenced to 6 years in prison. (references)

Korea

A recent example is the February 2001 amendments of Korea's IPR-related laws to increase the monetary penalties associated with criminal violations for infringement from 50 million won to 100 million won and to lengthen prison terms from five years to seven years. (references)

Kenya

The Prevention of Corruption Act, amended in late 1997 to create the Kenya Anti-Corruption Authority (KACA), makes it a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison to give or receive a bribe. (references)

Human Rights

Bangladesh

Maulana Azizul Haq, Chairman of the Islami Oikkyo Jote, a member of the four-party alliance, was rearrested inside prison in another case after the court granted him bail. (references)

Togo

Lome's central prison, built for 350 prisoners, reportedly housed 1,500 inmates or more during the year. (references)

Togo

In 2000 an estimated 50 percent of the prison population was pretrial detainees; there were no available statistics for the pretrial detainee population at year's end. (references)

Indigenous People

Australia

These laws set automatic prison terms for multiple convictions of certain crimes. (references)

Australia

Western Australia continued to retain its mandatory sentencing laws, which provide that a person (adult or juvenile) who commits the crime of home burglary three or more times is subject to a mandatory minimum prison sentence. (references)

Australia

Indigenous groups charge that police harassment of indigenous people, including juveniles, is pervasive and that racial discrimination among police and prison custodians persists. (references)

Minorities

Estonia

In January 17 ethnic Russian prison officials were fired for noncompliance with the language requirement. (references)

Egypt

One defendant was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 3 defendants were convicted of arson and sentenced to 1 year in prison. (references)

Liechtenstein

Violations are punishable by a maximum 2-year prison sentence. (references)

Political Economy

Central African Republic

Other human rights abuses included harsh prison conditions, arbitrary arrest and detention, prolonged detention without trial, limits on judicial independence, and infringements on citizens' right to privacy. (references)

Brazil

In April U.N. Special Rapporteur for Torture Sir Nigel Rodley released his report on torture, which contained many examples of the use of torture by police and prison administrators, and strongly criticized the Government for not taking measures to eliminate the use of torture. (references)

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Other principal human rights problems continued to include instances of excessive use of force by police, the Government's failure to punish adequately those responsible for such abuses, poor prison conditions, and an overburdened court system. (references)

Political Rights

Indonesia

All adult citizens, except active-duty members of the armed forces, persons in prison convicted of crimes punishable by over 5 years' incarceration, persons suffering from mental disorders, and persons deprived of voting rights by an irrevocable verdict of a court of justice, are eligible to vote. (references)

Djibouti

In 1996 the five, Moumin Bahdon Farah, Ahmed Boulaleh Barreh, Ali Mahamade Houmed, Ismael Guedi Hared, and Abdillahi Guireh Rayaleh, were accused of insulting former president Hassan Gouled Aptidon and sentenced to 6 months in prison and a large fine. (references)

Turkey

The deputies remained in prison at year's end. (references)

Trade

Zambia

The importation of the following is expressly prohibited: false and counterfeit coins or bank notes; indecent, obscene or objectionable material; goods manufactured or produced wholly or in part by prison labor; pirated and counterfeit goods; and any goods prohibited under any other law in Zambia such as the Drug and Pyscotropic Act, the Wildlife Act, National Heritage Act for Historical Artifacts. (references)

Travel

Uk

Air travelers to and from the United Kingdom should be aware that penalties against alcohol-related and other in-flight crimes ("air rage") are stiff and are being enforced with prison sentences. (references)

Uk

UK penalties for drunk driving are stiff and often result in prison sentences. (references)

Women

Jordan

Although few defendants are able to meet the stringent requirements for a crime of honor defense (the defendant personally must have witnessed the female victim engaging in sexual relations), most avoid trial for the crime of murder, and are tried instead on the charge of manslaughter; even those convicted of murder rarely spend more than 2 years in prison. (references)

Lebanon

Despite a law prohibiting battery with a maximum sentence of 3 years in prison for those convicted, some religious courts legally may require a battered wife to return to the house in spite of physical abuse. (references)

Kuwait

The Kuwaiti woman was being held in prison without bail at year's end. (references)

Worker Rights

Indonesia

The law allows the Government to petition the courts to dissolve a union if its basis conflicts with Pancasila or the 1945 constitution, or if a union's leaders or members, in the name of the union, commit crimes against the security of the State and are sentenced to at least 5 years in prison. (references)

China

At least seven others were sentenced to long prison terms. (references)

China

Li was charged with "incitement to subversion of state power," an apparent reference to his attempt to publicize prison conditions through a hunger strike. (references)

Lexicography

Devil's Dictionary

DEBT, n. An ingenious substitute for the chain and whip of the slave- driver. As, pent in an aquarium, the troutlet Swims round and round his tank to find an outlet, Pressing his nose against the glass that holds him, Nor ever sees the prison that enfolds him; So the poor debtor, seeing naught around him, Yet feels the narrow limits that impound him, Grieves at his debt and studies to evade it, And finds at last he might as well have paid it. Barlow S. Vode

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Top     

Spoken Usage: Prison

SpeakerPhrase(s)

Dominick Dunne

In Monaco, in a penthouse in Monte Carlo over the bank that Mr. Safra had owned and had just sold just before his death. And it's a fascinating case. The American nurse has now been in the Monaco prison for about two and a half years.

Frank Lindh

Well, Dan, I'm very troubled by that statement as well. I would just ask you to consider the fact that he was being pressed by a reporter after being pulled out of the basement of a prison where he went through that horrible ordeal.

Ted Koppel

Texas is certainly one of the largest states in the country for prison population and in point of fact, there are even some prisoners who are being exported to Texas and are being warehoused in Texas because the Texans have really made an industry of it.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Speeches: Prison

SpeakerTermPhrase(s)

John F. Kennedy

1961-1963But the world was not meant to be a prison in which man awaits his execution.

Gerald Ford

1974-1977Some judges are reluctant to send convicted criminals to prison because of inadequate facilities.

Ronald Reagan

1981-1989A security shield can one day render nuclear weapons obsolete and free mankind from the prison of nuclear terror.

George W. Bush

2001-2005We need mentors to love children, especially children whose parents are in prison.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Top     

Usage Frequency: Prison

"Prison" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 99.86% of the time. "Prison" is used about 6,423 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)
Parts of SpeechPercentUsage per
100 Million Words
Rank in English
Noun (singular)99.86%6,4141,513
Noun (proper)0.14%9117,287
                    Total100.00%6,423N/A

Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.

Top     

Derived & Related Names: Prison

The following table summarizes names derived from the word "prison".
 
NameGenderLanguageMeaning
MatriN/ABiblical

Prison

ShamirN/ABiblical

Prison

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

 

Top     

Expressions: Prison

Expressions using "prison": be in prison cast into prison clap in prison commit smb. to prison commit to prison debtor's prison escape from prison fling into prison fling smb. in prison give smb. a prison sentence in prison languish in prison lie in prison local prison open prison prison authorities prison bars prison base prison breach prison breaker prison breaking prison camp prison cell prison chaplain prison compound prison dress prison editor prison farm prison governor prison guard prison house prison life prison limits prison officer prison population prison psychosis prison sentence prison ship prison system prison term prison van prison warden prison welfare prison yard put in prison recommit to prison remand prison scrape clear of prison secrets of the prison house send to prison sent to prison serve a prison sentence shut smb. up in prison state prison State's prison throw in prison throw into prison. Additional references.

Hyphenated Usage

Beginning with "prison": prison-breaking, prison-building, prison-cages, prison-camp, prison-exercise, prison-gate, prison-house, prison-issue, prison-like, prison-made, prison-officer, prison-officers, prison-ship, prison-ships, prison-stable, prison-stockade, prison-term, prison-warder, prison-yard.

Ending with "prison": anti-prison, drugs-in-prison, ex-prison, fleet-prison, inter-prison, middle-class-prison, non-prison, palace-prison, pre-prison, wasp-prison.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Frequency of Internet Keywords: Prison

The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com.
 
ExpressionFrequency
per Day
ExpressionFrequency
per Day

prison

3,066

prison picture

144

prison pen pal

1,542

federal prison inmate

141

federal prison

1,220

georgia prison

123

federal bureau of prison

575

georgia state prison

123

state prison

536

prison life

122

bureau of prison

453

arizona state prison

116

ohio prison

416

illinois prison

116

prison inmate

413

north carolina prison

105

woman in prison

355

san quentin prison

103

florida prison

298

nc prison

103

california state prison

294

prison ministry

102

texas prison

287

woman prison pen pal

99

california prison

256

arizona prison

96

prison woman

222

prison photo

94

florida state prison

205

prison privatization

92

prison tattoo

186

prison inmate search

91

gang prison

169

arkansas prison

86

michigan prison

168

female prison pen pal

85

prison record

163

prison sing sing

84

prison art

151

prison state wasco

84
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Modern Translation: Prison

Language Translations for "prison"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.

Albanian

  

fut në burg (fling into prison, imprison), fus në burg (imprison), burgu, burg (cage, calaboose, can, choky, clink, gaol, jail, limbo, lockup, mill, Nick, pen, penitentiary, poky, prison house, quod, stir). (various references)

   

Arabic 

  

‏محبس (wedding ring), ‏حبس (confine, confinement, constraint, crib, custody, duress, gaol, imprison, imprisonment, jail, lockup, mewl, occlude, sequester, sequestration, shut), ‏سجن (be imprisoned, can, clap, clink, confine, cooler, detain, detention, gaol, hatch, hock, immure, imprison, imprisonment, incarcerate, incarceration, intern, internment, jail, jug, lock up, lockup, log cabin, mure, nick, penitentiary, pokey, quod, send up, stir, throw), ‏السجن (slammer), ‏أسر (captivate, captivity, capture, catch, enthralling, intrigue, seize, seizure, servitude, take, take prisoner). (various references)

   

Bulgarian 

  

затвор (bastille, bondage, calaboose, can, choky, clink, confinement, duress, gaol, hold, jail, jug, kitty, limbo, lock, lockup, mew, pen, penitentiary, pokey, pound, prison house, quod, shop, shut off, shutter, shuttle, stockade, stopper), затварям (case, cicatrize, close, constrain, douse, enclose, gaol, hem, house, immure, imprison, incarcerate, jail, latch, lock, lock up, mew, obturate, pen, pull to, restrain, screw up, seal off, shut, shut away, shut in, shut up, stop, turn off), заключвам (bolt, fasten, key, latch, lock, lock up, screw up, shut, shut in). (various references)

   

Chinese 

  

監獄 , (firm, hard, jail, solid, strong, supervisor, to inspect, to supervise), 监狱 (jail, jailhouse), , . (various references)

   

Czech

  

vìzení (confinement, gaol, jail, lockup, pound, prison house, retention, round house, roundhouse), vězení, trestnice, žalář (dungeon, gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Danish

  

fængsel (gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Dutch

  

kerker (cell, gaol, jail), gevangenis (gaol, jail), nor (gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Esperanto

  

prizono (gaol, jail), malliberulejo (gaol, jail), malliberejo (gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Faeroese

  

fongsul (gaol). (various references)

   

Farsi 

  

محبس (Calaboose, Dungeon, Gaol, Jail), وابسته به زندان , حبس (Bail, Calaboose, Custody, Durante, Imprisonment, Jail, Lockup), زندان کردن (Can, Lockup), زندان (Calaboose, Coop, Dungeon, Gaol, Grate, Jail, Presidio). (various references)

   

Finnish

  

vankila (jail, joutua, nick). (various references)

   

French

  

prison. (various references)

   

Frisian

  

finzenis (gaol). (various references)

   

German

  

Gefängnis (gaol, imprisonment, jail, jail house, jailhouse, penitentiary), Strafanstalt (penal institution, penitentiary), kerker (dungeon, dungeons, gaol, imprisonment, jail, oubliette). (various references)

   

Greek 

  

φυλακή (bagnio, brig, calaboose, clink, cooler, coop, gaol, hock, hoosegow, jail, jail house, jug, quod, stir), ειρκτή (gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Hebrew 

  

משמר (conservative, convoy, escort, guard, observance, post, preservative, watch), מאסר (arrest, confinement, detention, imprisonment, incarceration), כלא (confinement, jail, penitentiary), בית אסורים, בית כלא (jail, penitentiary), בית סוהר (jail), בית סהר (jail). (various references)

   

Hungarian

  

fogház (detention house, gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Indonesian

  

penjara (brig, dungeon, jail, quod), pembelokan (distortion, turning), bui (jail). (various references)

   

Italian

  

prigione (bastille, calaboose, clink, coop, dungeon, gaol, imprisonment, jail, quod), carcere (can, gaol, jail, oubliette, penitentiary). (various references)

   

Japanese Kanji 

  

牢獄 (jail), 監獄 , 獄舎 , 獄窓 (prison windows), 獄屋 , 人屋 (jail), 拘置所 (detention house), 刑務所 (penitentiary). (various references)

   

Japanese Katakana 

  

ひとや (all night, jail, one evening, one night, overnight), かんごく, ごくそう (prison windows), ごくしゃ, ごくや, こうちしょ (detention house), ろうごく (jail), けいむしょ (penitentiary). (various references)

   

Korean 

  

형무소. (various references)

   

Manx

  

pryssoon (brig, gaol, glasshouse, jail, lock up, penitentiary). (various references)

   

Norwegian

  

fengsel (gaol, jail). (various references)

   

Papiamen

  

prizon (gaol), prizòn (gaol), prison (gaol), piskalat (gaol). (various references)

   

Pig Latin

  

isonpray.(various references)

   

Portuguese

  

prisão (accouchement, apprehension, arrest, bastille, bond, cage, captivity, choky, confinement, constrained, custody, detention, duress, entanglement, ewer, gaol, jug, limbo, noose, pokey, quad, quod), cadeia (cage, calaboose, catena, chain, choky, clink, cufflink, ewer, fetter, gaol, jail, jug, network, orlop, penitentiary, pokey, prison house, quad, quod, shackle, stockade, ward), cárcere (calaboose). (various references)

   

Romanian

  

temniţã (cage, gaol, jail, keep), ocnã, arunca în închisoare (clap), aresta (apprehend, arrest, confine, grab, have up, lag, nab, pinch, seize, take into custody, trap), arest (arrest, committal, custody, detainer, detention, imprisonment, pinch), întemniţa (gaol, hold, immure, imprison, incarcerate, jail, jug, lag, lock up, pound, secure), închisoare (cage, cooler, coop, correction, gaol, hold, house of detention, imprisonment, jug, keep, pound, station house). (various references)

   

Russian 

  

тюрьма (bastille, bridewell, calaboose, gaol, jail, jug, lockup, pit, pound, prison house, quod, slammer, stone-jug). (various references)

   

Scottish

  

prìosan, fang (a sheep-pen, a vulture, den, sheep pen). (various references)

   

Serbo-Croatian

  

zatvorski (choky), zatvor (calaboose, choky, clink, confinement, cooler, coop, jail, lockup, obstipation, prison house, quod, stir, stockade), tamnica (dungeon, gaol). (various references)

   

Spanish

  

prisión (arrest, confinement, gaol, imprisonment, jail), encierro (confinement, duress, enclosure, inclosure, penning, shutting-in). (various references)

   

Sranan

  

dungr'oso (gaol). (various references)

   

Swahili

  

jela (gaol). (various references)

   

Swedish

  

fängelse (bagnio, calaboose, can, clink, gaol, hold, imprisonment, jail, jailhouse, jug, limbo, Nick, pen, penitentiary, prison house). (various references)

   

Tagalog

  

piítan (gaol), bilanggúan (gaol), bilíbid (gaol). (various references)

   

Turkish

  

kodes (bull pen, cage, can, choky, clink, cooler, gaol, hole, jail, jug, pen, quod, stir), hapsetme (imprisonment, incarceration, internment), hapishane (bull pen, cage, can, choky, clink, cooler, coop, gaol, institution, jail, Nick, pen, penal institution, penitentiary, pound, quod, roundhouse, shop, stir, stockade, tank, ward), hapis (charge, confinement, duress, gaol, imprisonment, jail), delik (aperture, bore, cavity, den, hole, hollow, mortice, mortise, opening, perforation, port, prick, slot, stir, vent, ventage, venthole), cezaevi (calaboose, jail, penal institution, penitentiary, quod, roundhouse, stockade). (various references)

   

Turkmen 

  

tьrme. (various references)

   

Ukrainian

  

ув'язнювати (confine, constrain, dungeon, embar, gaol, immure, imprison, incarcerate, jail, pound, quod), тюрма (quod), в'язниця (bandhouse, cage, calaboose, can, choky, clink, dump, gaol, jail, limbo, penitentiary, pound, quod, slammer, ward), неволя (captivity, yoke). (various references)

   

Vietnamese 

  

nhà tù (bastille, bridewell, calaboose, chaplain, college, gaol, held, hold, prison-house, rogue house), nhà lao (clink, prison-house), nhà giam (bagnio, cage, clink, gaol, prison-house, tolbooth, tollbooth). (various references)

   

Welsh

  

carchar (restraint). (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Top     

Ancestral Language Translations: Prison

LanguagePeriodTranslations
Latin500 BCE-Modern

carcer, carcere, carcerem, carceribus, carceris, carcerum, claustrum, custodia, custodiae, custodiam, custodiarum, custodias, custodiasque, custodiis, ergastula, ergastulo, nervi, nervicis, nervo, nervos, nervum, nervus, phylaca. (various references)

Old English450-1100

carcern, clustor. (various references)

Old French900-1400

prisoun. (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Top     

Bible Trace: Prison

LanguageDateSourceGenesis Chapter 42, Verse 19
Greek (transliterated)250 BCSeptuagintEi eirhnikoi este adelfoV umwn eiV katasceqhtw en th fulakh autoi de badisate kai apagagete ton agorasmon thV sitodosiaV umwn
Latin405VulgateSi pacifici estis frater vester unus ligetur in carcere vos autem abite et ferte frumenta quae emistis in domos vestras
Middle English1395WyclifIf ye be pesible, youre o brother be boundun in prisoun; ye forsothe goth, and berith the whete that ye han bouyt into youre howsis,
Renaissance English1526TyndaleYf ye meane no hurte let one of youre brethern be bounde in the preason and goo ye and brynge the necessarie foode vnto youre housholdes
Jacobean English1611King JamesIf ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
Victorian English1833WebsterIf ye are true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
Basic English1964OgdenIf you are true men, let one of you be kept in prison, while you go and take grain for the needs of your families;

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Matched Bible Translations: Prison

LanguageGenesis Chapter 42, Verse 19
CebuanoKong kamo mga tawo nga matuod, pasagdi ninyo nga ang usa sa inyong mga igsoon magapabilin nga binantayan sa balay nga gibilanggoan kaninyo; apan panlakaw kamo, ug dad-on ninyo ang trigo nga alang sa gutom sa inyong mga panimalay.
CroatianAko ste pošteni, neka jedan od vas ostane u zatvoru, a vi ostali idite i nosite žito svojim izgladnjelim domovima.
DanishEr I virkelig ærlige Folk, lad så en af eder blive tilbage som Fange i det Fængsel, som I sad i, medens I andre drager hjem med Korn til at stille Hungeren i eders Huse;
DutchZo gij vroom zijt, zo zij een uwer broederen gebonden in het huis uwer bewaring; en gaat gij heen, brengt het koren voor den honger uwer huizen.
Finnishjos olette rehellisiä miehiä, niin jääköön yksi teistä, veljeksistä, vangiksi vankilaan, jossa teitä säilytettiin, mutta te muut menkää viemään kotiin viljaa perheittenne nälänhätään.
FrenchSi vous êtes sincères, que l`un de vos frères reste enfermé dans votre prison; et vous, partez, emportez du blé pour nourrir vos familles,
GermanSeid ihr redlich, so laßt eurer Brüder einen gebunden liegen in eurem Gefängnis; ihr aber zieht hin und bringet heim, was ihr gekauft habt für den Hunger.
HungarianHa igaz emberek vagytok, maradjon fogva egyik testvéretek a ti tömlöczötökben, ti pedig menjetek el, vigyetek gabonát házaitok szükségére.
Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hariUntuk membuktikan bahwa kamu ini jujur, seorang dari kamu akan ditahan dalam penjara; yang lain boleh pulang dan membawa gandum yang kamu beli untuk keluargamu yang sedang menderita lapar.
Indonesian-Terjemahan LamaJikalau kiranya kamu orang yang benar, baiklah saudara kamu seorang tinggal terkurung dalam penjara dan pergilah kamu sekalian, bawalah gandum karena sebab kelaparan orang isi rumahmu.
ItalianSe voi siete sinceri, uno dei vostri fratelli resti prigioniero nel vostro carcere e voi andate a portare il grano per la fame delle vostre case.
MaoriKi te mea he hunga pono koutou, me here tetahi o o koutou tuakana i roto i te whare i tiakina ai koutou: otiia me haere koutou ki te kawe witi mo te matekai o o koutou whare:
NorwegianDersom I er ærlige folk, så skal en av eder brødre bli tilbake i fengslet, men I andre kan dra avsted og ha med eder korn til hjelp mot hungersnøden i eders hjem,
RumanianDacq sknteyi oameni de treabq, sq rqmknq unul din frayii vowtri knchis kn temniya voastrq; iar ceilalyi plecayi, luayi grku ca sq vq hrqniyi familiile,
RussianЕУМЙ ЧЩ МАДЙ ЮЕУФОЩЕ, ФП ПДЙО ВТБФ ЙЪ ЧБУ РХУФШ УПДЕТЦЙФУС Ч ДПНЕ, ЗДЕ ЧЩ ЪБЛМАЮЕОЩ; Б ЧЩ РПКДЙФЕ, ПФЧЕЪЙФЕ ИМЕВ, ТБДЙ ЗПМПДБ УЕНЕКУФЧ ЧБЫЙИ;
SpanishSi sois hombres honestos, quede preso en vuestra celda uno de vuestros hermanos. El resto id, llevad las provisiones para saciar el hambre de vuestras casas.
Swedishären I redliga män, så må en av eder, I bröder, stanna såsom fånge i huset där I haven suttit fängslade; men I andra mån fara eder väg, och föra hem med eder den säd som I haven köpt till hjälp mot hungersnöden hemma hos eder.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Top     

Derivations & Misspellings: Prison

Derivations

Words beginning with "prison": prisoned, prisoner, prisoners, prisoning, prisons. (additional references)

Words ending with "prison": imprison, postprison. (additional references)

Words containing "prison": coprisoner, coprisoners, imprisoned, imprisoning, imprisonment, imprisonments, imprisons. (additional references)


Misspellings

"Prison" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Aprismo, apriso, Drizhon, Frisoni, paison, Parison, Pericom, Perion, Periton, persion, Pipson, piriton, Piron, pison, Pisoni, pisson, Pixon, Plisson, Pranon, prason, Prasong, precon, preon, presin, presn, presson, prieo, Prijon, Prinsen, Prinsloo, prion, prione, prions, priosn, prisn, priso, priton, privo, prizen, procon, Prosen, proso, proson, prysor. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

Top     

Rhyming with "Prison"

# of Phoneme MatchesPronunciationWord(s) rhyming with "prison" (pronounced pri"zun)
6p r i" z u nimprison.
5-r i" z u nrisen.
4-i" z u narisen.
3-z u nartisan, bipartisan, brazen, chosen, citizen, cousin, crimson, denizen, dozen, emblazon, frozen, Hausen, Hazan, horizon, Mizen, nonpartisan, partisan, poison, reason, rosin, season, thousand, treason, unfrozen, wizen.

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Top     

Anagrams: Prison

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

Direct Anagrams: orpins, prions, spinor.

Words within the letters "i-n-o-p-r-s"

-1 letter: irons, noirs, noris, opsin, ornis, orpin, pions, pirns, porns, prion, rosin.

-2 letters: inro, ions, iron, nips, noir, nori, pins, pion, pirn, piso, pois, pons, porn, pros, rins, rips, snip, sori, sorn, spin.

-3 letters: ins, ion, nip, nor, nos, ons, ops, ors, pin, pis, poi, pro, psi, rin, rip, sin, sip, sir, son, sop.

 Words containing the letters "i-n-o-p-r-s"
 

+1 letter: inpours, orpines, prisons, prosing, soprani, spinors, sporing, tropins.

 

+2 letters: atropins, conspire, imprison, incorpse, ingroups, isoprene, morphins, overspin, parsonic, perigons, pinworks, pinworms, pioneers, pointers, poisoner, poniards, porniest, portions, positron, prisoned, prisoner, prolines, promines, propines, proteins, pruinose, purloins, rampions, reposing, ripienos, ropiness, scorpion, snoopier, sorption, spongier, spoonier, spooring, sporting, tropines.

 

+3 letters: aepyornis, aspersion, atropines, caparison, caponiers, conscript, conspired, conspires, coprinces, disproven, dripstone, droppings, drypoints, entropies, eruptions, groupings, hornpipes, imprisons, inceptors, incorpsed, incorpses, inspector, interpose, isoprenes, morphines, nephrosis, offprints, offspring, orpiments, outsprint, overspins, ownership, panbroils, paranoias, paranoics, paranoids, parsimony, parvolins, pastoring, patronise, pecorinos, peignoirs, pensioner, penurious, peperonis, perfusion, persimmon, personify, pervasion, phoronids, picaroons, pinafores, pinedrops, pinkroots, pliotrons, poisoners, positrons, posturing, precision, prelusion, premonish, preunions, prevision, princocks, princoxes, printouts, prisoners, prisoning, procaines, profusion, progenies, progestin, prognosis, prolamins, prolusion, promising, proposing, proscenia, prosimian, prosiness, protamins, protistan, provinces, provision, purposing, pyrenoids, pyronines, raindrops, rainspout, replicons, repulsion, rhodopsin, riposting, scorpions, scrooping, shipborne, shipowner, sopranino, sorptions, sporangia, springbok, sprouting, stropping, supinator, terpinols, troponins, uprousing, upsoaring, vaporings.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.

Top     



INDEX

1. Definition
2. Synonyms
3. Crosswords
4. Usage: Modern
5. Usage: Commercial
6. Images: Slideshow
7. Images: Photo Album
8. Images: Digital Art
9. Sounds
10. Quotations: Familiar
11. Quotations: Historic
12. Quotations: Fiction
13. Quotations: Non-fiction
14. Quotations: Spoken
15. Quotations: Speeches
16. Usage Frequency
17. Names: Derived from
18. Expressions
19. Expressions: Internet
20. Translations: Modern
21. Translations: Ancient
22. Bible Trace
23. Derivations
24. Rhymes
25. Anagrams
26. Bibliography


  

Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.