penitentiary

[ pen-i-ten-shuh-ree ]

noun

, plural pen·i·ten·tia·ries.

1. a place for imprisonment, reformatory discipline, or punishment, especially a prison maintained in the U.S. by a state or the federal government for serious offenders.
2. Roman Catholic Church. a tribunal in the Curia Romana, presided over by a cardinal grand penitentiary, having jurisdiction over certain matters, as penance, confession, dispensation, absolution, and impediments, and dealing with questions of conscience reserved for the Holy See.

adjective

1. (of an offense) punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary.
2. of, relating to, or intended for imprisonment, reformatory discipline, or punishment.
3. penitential.

penitentiary

/ ˌpɛnɪˈtɛnʃərɪ /

noun

1. (in the US and Canada) a state or federal prison: in Canada, esp a federal prison for offenders convicted of serious crimes Sometimes shortened topen
2. RC Church
   1. a cleric appointed to supervise the administration of the sacrament of penance in a particular area
   2. a priest who has special faculties to absolve particularly grave sins
   3. a cardinal who presides over a tribunal that decides all matters affecting the sacrament of penance
   4. this tribunal itself

adjective

1. another word for penitential
2. (of an offence) punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary

Word History and Origins

Origin of penitentiary¹

1375–1425; late Middle English penitenciarie priest who administers penance, prison < Medieval Latin pēnitēntiārius of penance. See penitence, -ary

Word History and Origins

Origin of penitentiary¹

C15 (meaning also: an officer dealing with penances): from Medieval Latin poenitēntiārius, from Latin paenitēns penitent

Example Sentences

“I’d say there is a majority of open support for Trump within the inmate population here, especially among the whites,” wrote Enrique Banda-Garcia, a Trump supporter who is incarcerated in Washington State Penitentiary.

From Slate

Clark, Twain wrote, “is as rotten a human being as can be found anywhere under the flag; he is a shame to the American nation, and no one has helped to send him to the Senate who did not know that his proper place was the penitentiary, with a ball and chain on his legs.”

From Los Angeles Times

When she delivered a food bag in June of last year, guards told her that he had been transferred from the penitentiary some weeks earlier.

From BBC

In fact, the experience fueled my anger at the racism that I believed drove America’s sprawling penitentiary system.

From Slate

Yuri Malev was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in a minimum-security penal colony, a penitentiary facility.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• lockup
• prison