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Just as English is full of nouns referring to places where prisoners are confined, from the familiar (jail and prison) to the obscure (calaboose and bridewell), so we have multiple verbs for the action of putting people behind bars. Some words can be used as both nouns and verbs, if in slightly different forms: one can be jailed in a jail, imprisoned in a prison, locked up in a lockup, or even jugged in a jug. Incarcerate does not have such a noun equivalent in English—incarceration refers to the state of confinement rather than a physical structure—but it comes ultimately from the Latin noun carcer, meaning “prison.” Incarcerate is also on the formal end of the spectrum when it comes to words related to the law and criminal justice, meaning you are more likely to read or hear about someone incarcerated in a penitentiary or detention center than in the pokey or hoosegow.
Synonyms
Examples of incarcerate in a Sentence
Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 June 2024
Mexico’s police department said graduates of the program were five times less likely to commit another crime compared with somebody who had been incarcerated.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2024
The 69-year-old has been incarcerated at Potosi Correctional Center, about 70 miles south of St. Louis.
—Katie Moore, Kansas City Star, 26 May 2024
Now, a federal jury in Mobile has ruled in the favor of Canyon Moye, who had all the toes on his left foot amputated in February 2020 while he was incarcerated at Fountain Correctional Facility in Escambia County, court records show.
—Julia Marnin, Miami Herald, 24 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for incarcerate 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'incarcerate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near incarcerate
Cite this Entry
“Incarcerate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incarcerate. Accessed 6 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
incarcerate
verb
Legal Definition
incarcerate
transitive verb
Latin incarceratus, past participle of incarcerare, from in- in + carcer prison
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