( <英> 亦作gaol)
1
- a place for the confinement of people accused or convicted of a crime监狱：
he spent 15 years in jail
他在监狱里蹲了15年
as modifier a jail sentence.判处监禁。
1.1
- mass noun confinement in a jail监禁：
she was sentenced to three months' jail.
她被判处三个月的监禁。
with obj.(一般作be jailed)
- put (someone) in jail拘禁, 把…投入监狱：
the driver was jailed for two years.
司机被拘禁两年。
词源
Middle English: based on Latin cavea （see CAGE）. The word came into English in two forms, jaiole from Old French and gayole from Anglo-Norman French gaole （surviving in the spelling gaol）, originally pronounced with a hard g, as in goat.