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noun
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
3.
(of an offense) punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary.
4.
of, pertaining to, or intended for imprisonment, reformatory discipline, or punishment.
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Penitentiary
has a plethora of syllables.
So is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Does it mean:
| an obscure term ostensibly referring to a lung disease caused by silica dust, sometimes cited as one of the longest words in the English language. |
| (used as a nonsense word by children to express approval or to represent the longest word in English.) |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To penitentiary
Example Sentences
- McVeigh today awaited the move from his cell on death row at the federal penitentiary here to the building where he will.
- And there are those who would put me in the penitentiary for saying so.
- As the name suggests, the twist is that the remote-monitoring technology is meant to be used inside penitentiary walls.
Collins
World English Dictionary
| penitentiary (ˌpɛnɪˈtɛnʃərɪ) | |
| —n , pl -ries | |
| 1. | Sometimes shortened to: pen (in the US and Canada) a state or federal prison: in Canada, esp a federal prison for offenders convicted of serious crimes |
| 2. | RC Church |
| a. a cleric appointed to supervise the administration of the sacrament of penance in a particular area | |
| b. a priest who has special faculties to absolve particularly grave sins | |
| c. a cardinal who presides over a tribunal that decides all matters affecting the sacrament of penance | |
| d. this tribunal itself | |
| —adj | |
| 3. | another word for penitential |
| 4. | (US), (Canadian) (of an offence) punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary |
| [C15 (meaning also: an officer dealing with penances): from Medieval Latin poenitēntiārius, from Latin paenitēns | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
penitentiary
early 15c., "place of punishment for offenses against the church," from M.L. penitentiaria, from fem. of penitentiarius (adj.) "of penance," from L. paenitentia "penitence" (see penitence). Meaning "house of correction" first found 1806 (originally an asylum for prostitutes).
EXPANDSlang shortening pen is attested from 1884.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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