imprisonment

/ɪmˈprɪznmənt/ (bre, ipa) · /ɪmˈprɪznmənt/ (ame, ipa) · /-zᵊnmənt/ (ame, mw)

imprisonment — noun

  • imprisonmentsingular
  • imprisonmentsplural

1. the legal punishment of being confined inside a prison for committing a crime, o

1.名詞B2
釋義

the legal punishment of being confined inside a prison for committing a crime, or the length of time a person serves this punishment

例句

Amani was sentenced to five years of imprisonment for the bank robbery.

sentence + to + imprisonment — legal phrasing

The judge reduced Ramón's sentence from life imprisonment to twenty years.

同義詞
  • incarceration

    more formal, used mainly in legal, medical, and academic writing

  • confinement

    broader in meaning — can refer to restriction in any space, not just prison

  • custody

    implies being held by authorities, often before trial rather than as punishment

  • detention

    usually temporary or pre-trial, shorter in duration than imprisonment

反義詞
  • freedom

    the state of not being confined or restricted

  • release

    the act of ending a period of imprisonment

文法句型

imprisonment for + crime/period

imprisonment of + person

sentence + of + imprisonment

用法筆記

Imprisonment is a formal noun most common in legal documents, news reports, and official writing. In everyday conversation, speakers typically use 'prison' or 'jail' instead — for example, 'He did five years in prison' rather than 'He experienced five years of imprisonment.' When referring to a specific type of confinement, common compounds include 'life imprisonment,' 'false imprisonment,' and 'wrongful imprisonment.'

常見錯誤

❌The judge sent him to imprisonment for five years.
✅The judge sentenced him to five years of imprisonment.
💡'imprisonment' describes a legal status or period, not a physical location; use 'sentence + to + imprisonment' or 'prison/jail' for the place.