jailbirds

noun

plural of jailbird
as in prisoners
a person convicted as a criminal and serving a prison sentence had spent most of his sorry life as a jailbird in hoosegows across the South

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of jailbirds But these jailbirds aren’t using their own fingers to fire off missives or create clones. — Andrew Zucker, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jailbirds
  1. prisoners
  2. convicts
  3. inmates
Noun
  • Constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment prohibit deliberate indifference to prisoners’ medical needs.
    — Jaquelyn Jahn, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Offering the Black Panther salute in tribute to the six Black prisoners found dead at Attica Prison, during the funeral held in Brooklyn.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of prisoners
Noun
  • After a career spent playing convicts and criminals, the opportunity was appealing to Trejo.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Aiming to make the race to succeed Tillis a referendum on crime, Republicans have run ads claiming that Democratic nominee Roy Cooper went easy on convicts during his two terms in the governor’s mansion.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of convicts
Noun
  • Before the arrival of the Sisters of Mary Morning Star, the death row inmates had been plagued by petty infighting.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Fewer than half of the 170,000 inmates released from California prisons between 2015 and 2019 found jobs, and many of those jobs were temporary, according to the Public Policy Institute of California.
    — Cathie Anderson, Sacbee.com, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of inmates

Browse Nearby Words

jailbird
jailbirds
jailbreak
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Cite this Entry

“Jailbirds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jailbirds. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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