监狱

• Pinyin: jiān yù
• Hanzi breakdown: 监 = 臣 + 皿 (official oversight and confinement); 狱 = 犬 + 言 + 犬 (two dogs flanking speech — the guarded place where testimony is held, a prison)

Meaning

Prison; jail. A place of confinement for people convicted of crimes and sentenced to imprisonment.

The standard word for prison in mainland China. Appears in legal, journalistic, and literary contexts. Distinct from 拘留所 (detention centre for shorter periods) and 看守所 (pre-trial detention facility). Also used figuratively to describe any situation that feels like a trap or total confinement. The related term 监狱制度 (prison system) appears in criminology and legal reform discourse.

Examples

1. 他因诈骗罪被判入狱，在监狱中服刑五年。 He was convicted of fraud and sentenced to five years in prison.
2. 改善监狱条件是保障服刑人员基本权利的重要措施。 Improving prison conditions is an important measure to protect the basic rights of incarcerated people.
3. 她用监狱来形容那段无法逃脱的婚姻生活。 She described that inescapable marriage as a prison.

Usage Guide

Context: law, journalism, literature, social commentary, criminal justice

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 监狱的功能应以惩罚隔离还是矫正再社会化为主，一直是刑改中的争议焦点。(Whether prisons should focus on punishment and isolation or on rehabilitation and resocialization has long been a point of controversy in prison reform.)
• 他在自传中写下监狱里的七年，把那段封闭生活视为与真实自我相遇的修行。(In his autobiography, he wrote about his seven years in prison and saw that closed life as a form of practice that brought him face to face with his true self.)

Don't Say

• 监狱 refers specifically to a prison for convicted criminals serving sentences. Do not confuse with 看守所 (pre-trial detention centre) or 拘留所 (short-term detention). Figurative use of 监狱 is common in literature but may sound dramatic in plain speech — use 困境 or 牢笼 for metaphorical confinement in most contexts.

Origin & History

监 (to supervise; to confine — 臣 official + 皿 vessel — one confined under official watch) + 狱 (prison — 犬 dog + 言 speech + 犬 dog — two watchdogs flanking a prisoner)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal