prison

From Middle English prisoun, prison, a borrowing from Old French prison, from Latin prehensiōnem, accusative singular of prehensiō, from the verb prehendō. Doublet of prehension.

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɹɪzən/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪzən

prison (countable and uncountable, plural prisons)

1. A place or institution of confinement, especially of long-term confinement for those convicted of serious crimes or otherwise considered undesirable by the government.

   The cold stone walls of the prison had stood for over a century.

2. (uncountable) Confinement in prison.

   Prison was a harrowing experience for him.

3. (colloquial) Any restrictive environment, such as a harsh academy or home.

   The academy was a prison for many of its students because of its strict teachers.

• (place or institution of confinement): bridewell, big house; see also Thesaurus:prison.
• (state of confinement): imprisonment

• (place or institution of confinement): correctional facility, correctional institution

• (place or institution of confinement): gaol, jail, slammer, hoosegow

prison (third-person singular simple present prisons, present participle prisoning, simple past and past participle prisoned)

1. (transitive) To imprison.

• prison at OneLook Dictionary Search

• porins, prions, proins, spinor

From Old French prison, inherited from Latin prehensiō, prehensiōnem, from prehendō. Doublet of préhension.

• IPA^(key): /pʁi.zɔ̃/

• audio

  (file)

prison f (plural prisons)

1. prison

• emprisonner
• prisonnier

• “prison” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

• prions, ripons

From Old French prison, from Latin prehensiō, prehensiōnem (“seizing, apprehending, arresting, capturing”).

prison f (plural prisons)

1. (Jersey) prison

• emprisonner, mettre en prison (“to imprison”)

• prisoun (less common)
• prisun (less common)

From Latin prehensiō, prehensiōnem, from prehendō.

prison f (oblique plural prisons, nominative singular prison, nominative plural prisons)

1. prison
   • c. 1200, 'Aucassin et Nicolette':

     Por vos sui en prison mis
     dans ce celier sousterin

     For you, I have been put in this prison
     in this underground cellar

prison m (oblique plural prisons, nominative singular prisons, nominative plural prison)

1. prisoner

• prisonnier

• → English: prison
• French: prison
• Norman: prison (Jersey)