inmate

inmate — noun

1. someone who is locked up in prison or in a mental hospital, either because they

1.名詞B2
釋義

someone who is locked up in prison or in a mental hospital, either because they broke the law or because they need long-term medical supervision

例句

Brooke visited her father at the prison every month while he was an inmate there.

The new inmate, Sahil, received a blue uniform and a bed in a shared cell.

Collocation: new inmate / fellow inmate

同義詞
  • prisoner

    more common in everyday speech and job titles (prison officer, prisoner transport); narrower in meaning — only refers to jails and prisons, not hospitals

  • convict

    specifies someone who has been legally found guilty and is serving a sentence; does not cover patients or pre-trial detainees

  • detainee

    someone held temporarily by authorities (e.g. before trial, in immigration holding); implies shorter or less permanent confinement

  • patient

    the correct neutral term for someone receiving medical treatment; used instead of 'inmate' when referring to people in general or psychiatric hospitals in a clinical context

用法筆記

In formal or official contexts (reports, legal documents, facility rules) this term covers both prison populations and patients in psychiatric hospitals. In everyday conversation, 'prisoner' is preferred when referring specifically to people in jail.

常見錯誤

❌My uncle is an inmate of the general hospital for a heart condition.
✅My uncle is a patient at the general hospital for a heart condition.
💡'Inmate' is used for psychiatric hospitals and prisons, not general medical hospitals.
❌The inmates gathered outside the stadium gates before the concert.
✅The crowd gathered outside the stadium gates before the concert.
💡'Inmate' only describes people confined in an institution, not people at an event.