Jail

A place where people are kept locked up by the government, usually while they are waiting for trial or serving short sentences. It is meant to keep them under control and away from the public.

From Old French “jaiole” or “gaiole,” meaning “cage,” from Late Latin “gabiola,” a diminutive of “cavea,” meaning “cage” or “enclosure.” English kept both spellings “jail” and “gaol” for centuries, with “gaol” surviving mainly in British legal writing. Modern English has mostly settled on “jail.”