Alcatraz

American

[al-kuh-traz] / ˈæl kəˌtræz /

noun

a small island in W California, in San Francisco Bay: site of a U.S. penitentiary 1933–63.

Alcatraz British

/ ˈælkəˌtræz /

noun

an island in W California, in San Francisco Bay: a federal prison until 1963

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"Rebuilding Alcatraz into a modern prison is a stupid notion that would be nothing more than a waste of taxpayer dollars and an insult to the intelligence of the American people."

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

“This is a terrific facility; it needs a lot of work, but no one has been known to escape from Alcatraz and survive.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

US President Donald Trump asked Congress on Friday for $152 million to begin rebuilding the notorious Alcatraz prison, pressing ahead with his vision to return the former island lockup to active use.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Which means some fumbles remain fumbles on my phone: “Fog” occasionally becomes “dog” and tennis star Carlos Alcaraz unfairly earns the surname Alcatraz.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

It was a tall, slender man standing behind Delmond Alcatraz.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023