penitentiaries

noun

plural of penitentiary
as in prisons
a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody a sentence in the state penitentiary for robbery

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 penitentiaries Hodge says he was abused in multiple federal penitentiaries, but was frequently blocked from filing complaints about it. — Christie Thompson, NPR, 13 July 2026 This includes providing the Colombian military more leeway in the field, signing a new security agreement with Washington and building 10 mega-prisons that mimic Bukele’s network of penitentiaries in El Salvador. — Daniel Depetris, Chicago Tribune, 2 June 2026 Behind bars in state penitentiaries in Gatesville and Marlin, Mejia felt forgotten. — Emiliano Tahui Gómez, Austin American Statesman, 17 Mar. 2026 The wave of prison violence is happening despite the deployment of military and police forces in several penitentiaries. — Michael Rios, CNN Money, 8 Dec. 2025 After his conviction, Gray was sent to Angola, one of the most violent penitentiaries in the country at the time. — Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penitentiaries
  1. prisons
  2. jails
Noun
  • Burnham also faces pressure over Britain’s overcrowded prisons.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Death by medical neglect in Belarusian prisons is well documented.
    — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of prisons
Noun
  • When women tried to march for their rights, they were violently suppressed, and by 2023, nearly all those in Afghan jails were political prisoners, and many were tortured.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Filling empty beds The national incarceration rate – which includes both jails, for short-term detention, and prisons, for sentences of more than a year – has more or less crept downward since 2010.
    — Ella Siegrist, The Conversation, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of jails

Browse Nearby Words

penitential
penitentiaries
penitentiary
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Cite this Entry

“Penitentiaries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penitentiaries. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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