Words / B2

im-PRIZNM-uh-nt/ɪmˈprɪznmənt/

Imprisonment is being in prison, or a prison sentence: a term of imprisonment; false imprisonment. Prison is the place; imprisonment is the state or the sentence. Sentencing remarks mentioned imprisonment. Legal and news. Do not use it for being stuck in a lift.

Meaning

The state of being in prison; a prison sentence.

Examples

• “The sentencing remarks mentioned imprisonment as a last resort.”
• “False imprisonment is a civil claim, which is the legal-sense trap.”

Good to know

a term of imprisonment; life imprisonment; false imprisonment. Place: prison. Legal register. Countable as a sentence in some uses. Not a metaphor for boredom.

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