Another word confusion jail vs prison that has bothered me for some time. What is the difference between them?
Well, a jail is usually a small building to hold people waiting on a trial or transfer to a prison or for those accused of minor crimes or short punishments (generally 90 days). It’s managed at a local level.
A prison is usually a large building with more security to hold people sentenced for greater crimes or long punishments. It’s managed at a state or federal level.
NOTE: Don’t use the in front of prison unless you are referring to a particular prison.
Exploring Later . . .
You may want to explore “Accuse vs Allege vs Suspect“, “Adversary vs Enemy vs Foe vs Opponent“, “Blackmail versus Extortion“, “Cell versus Sell“, “Cereal versus Serial“, “Defamation is Either Libel or Slander“, “Liable versus Libel“, “Persecute versus Prosecute“, “Statue versus Statute“, and “Villain versus Villein“.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Jail | Prison |
|---|---|
 |
 — |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun; Verb, transitive
Plural for the noun: jails Third person present verb: jails |
Noun; Verb, transitive
Plural for the noun: prisons Third person present verb: prisons |
| Noun: A building for the detention of people awaiting trial or convicted of a minor offense Detention in such a place [Informal] Get out of a difficult situation Verb, transitive: To take into or hold in lawful custody
|
Noun: A building in which people are legally held as a punishment for a crime they have committed, especially felonies, or while awaiting trial A state of imprisonment or captivity A place or condition of confinement or restriction Verb, transitive: |
| Examples: | |
| Noun: He served 15 months in jail. The judge handed down his jail sentence. He had his get-out-of-jail free card ready. “Violators face up to nine months in jail or as much as $10,000 in fines” (Traster). “Brinsley got out of jail last July, and was desperate and aimless” (Nestel). Verb, transitive: “Another was accused in a lawsuit of threatening to jail women if they didn’t have sex with him” (Libby). After the police arrested him, he was jailed until he was taken to trial. Depending on the judge’s ruling, they may be jailed again as punishment for a crime. The police quickly jailed the men who were caught trying to steal a car. |
Noun: He died in prison. Both men were sent to prison. They were threatened with prison if they did not pay. Depending on your financial status, you may be incarcerated in one of those Club Feds. He had spent too many years in prison. He felt his job had been a prison. Verb, transitive: He was prisoned for six months for contempt of court. He was prisoned for debt. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: gaol-like, gaolless, jail-like, jailable, jailless, jaillike, nonjailable, unjailed Noun: gaol [British], gaoler, jailbait, jailbird, jailbreak, jailbreaker, jailer, jailhouse, jailor Verb: jailbreak, jailbroke, rejail |
Adjective: postprison, prisonlike Noun: prisoner Verb: imprison |
| History of the Word: | |
| Middle English based on the Latin cavea.
The word came into English in two forms, jaiole from the Old French and gayole from the Anglo-Norman French gaole (surviving in the spelling gaol), originally pronounced with a hard g, as in goat. |
Late Old English prisun, from the Old French prisun, from the Latin prensio(n-), variant of prehensio(n-) meaning laying hold of, from the verb prehendere. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
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Resources for Jail versus Prison
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Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: jail
The Free Dictionary: jail, prison
Libby, Sara and Jesse Marx. “Sacramento Report: Jones, COVID-19, and the Irony of Remote Voting.” Voice of San Diego. 28 Aug 2020. Accessed 21 Sept 2024. <https://voiceofsandiego.org/2020/08/28/sacramento-report-jones-covid-19-and-the-irony-of-remote-voting/>. Article.
Nestel, ML. “Alleged Cop Killer Ismaaiyl Brinsley Had a Death Wish.” The Daily Beast. 21 Dec 2014. Accessed 21 Sept 2024. <https://www.thedailybeast.com/alleged-cop-killer-ismaaiyl-brinsley-had-a-death-wish>. Article.
Traster, Tina. “Judge: Rehoming Kids Is Trafficking.” The Daily Beast. 30 Dec 30 2014. Last updated 14 Apr 2017. Accessed 21 Sept 2024. <https://www.thedailybeast.com/judge-rehoming-kids-is-trafficking>. Article.
Pinterest Photo Credits
Union County Jail is Bill Fitzpatrick‘s own work and is under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license and Alcatraz Prison by Justin Scott, National Park Service, and is in the public domain. Both are via Wikimedia Commons.
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