Buildings where people convicted of crimes are locked up as punishment.
From Old French 'prison' and Latin 'prensio' (a taking or seizure), from 'prendere' (to seize). Originally meant any place of confinement, but by medieval times referred specifically to buildings for criminals.
The U.S. has 5% of the world's population but 20% of the world's prisoners—making American prisons a massive industry with private companies lobbying for longer sentences. The word 'prison' is ancient, but mass incarceration is shockingly modern.
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