1
be in prison
表示状态
He was in prison for ten years.
他在监狱里待了十年。
监狱
prisons — plural of prison
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
监狱
A building or institution where people are legally confined, especially for long periods, typically for crimes they have committed.
He was in prison for ten years.
他在监狱里待了十年。
关押人们的地方或机构,尤其在美国用于长期监禁被判重罪或被政府视为不受欢迎的人
A place or institution where people are held against their will, in the US especially for long-term confinement, as of those convicted of serious crimes or otherwise considered undesirable by the government.
监狱
a correctional institution where persons are confined while on trial or for punishment
监禁
Confinement in prison.
禁锢之地
a prisonlike situation; a place of seeming confinement
He was sentenced to five years in prison for robbery.
他因抢劫被判入狱五年。
The company's strict rules made the office feel like a prison.
公司的严格规定让办公室感觉像监狱。
After his escape, the police recaptured him and returned him to prison.
他越狱后，警察再次抓获他并将其送回监狱。
表示状态
He was in prison for ten years.
他在监狱里待了十年。
被动结构
The criminal was sent to prison for robbery.
该罪犯因抢劫被送进监狱。
Three prisoners escaped from prison last night.
昨晚三名囚犯越狱。
Not this
He was sent to prisons.
Use this
He was sent to prison.
当表示“入狱”这一状态时，prison 用作抽象名词，前面不加冠词，也不使用复数。汉语中“监狱”可泛指监禁状态，但英语中 prison 在此处为不可数名词。
Not this
The prison escaped from jail.
Use this
The prisoner escaped from jail.
Prison 指“监狱”这一地点，而 prisoner 指“囚犯”。汉语中“监狱”与“囚犯”字形相近，学习者易混淆。表示“逃跑”的主语应是“囚犯”而非“监狱”。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
在监狱中
He spent ten years in prison for robbery.
他因抢劫在监狱里待了十年。
入狱
If found guilty, she could go to prison for life.
如果被判有罪，她可能会终身监禁。
刑期
The judge gave him a five-year prison sentence.
法官判了他五年徒刑。
越狱
The movie is about a daring prison break.
这部电影是关于一次大胆的越狱。
监狱看守
The prison guard checked the cells every hour.
监狱看守每小时检查牢房。
自设的牢笼
He realized that his fear was a prison of his own making.
他意识到他的恐惧是自己设下的牢笼。
思想的牢笼
Anxiety can become a prison of the mind.
焦虑可能成为思想的牢笼。
过去的牢笼
She decided to break free from the prison of her past.
她决定摆脱过去给她的牢笼。
监狱不是你等死的地方，而是你活下去的地方。
In the movie The Last Castle, Colonel Winter says, 'Prison is not a place you go to die, it's a place you go to live.'
在电影《最后城堡》中，温特上校说：‘监狱不是你等死的地方，而是你活下去的地方。’
总有办法逃出监狱。
In the TV series Prison Break, Michael Scofield often says, 'There's always a way out of prison.'
在电视剧《越狱》中，迈克尔·斯科菲尔德常说：‘总有办法逃出监狱。’
Use prisons naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
‘pri’似‘怕人’，监狱令人害怕。
“prison” 通常用于正式、法律及日常语境，指代监狱或监禁状态，使用范围较广，无明显语境限制。
作可数名词时指具体的监狱建筑；作不可数名词时指被监禁的状态。
Dictionary facts from DICTIONARY_API_DEV, ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.