borstal

American  

[bawr-stuhl] / ˈbɔr stəl /

noun

1. a school providing therapy and vocational training for delinquent boys in the United Kingdom and parts of the Commonwealth in the 20th century and continuing to operate in India and some other Commonwealth nations in the 21st century.

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borstal British  

/ ˈbɔːstəl /

noun

1. (formerly in Britain) an informal name for an establishment in which offenders aged 15 to 21 could be detained for corrective training. Since the Criminal Justice Act 1982, they have been replaced by youth custody centres (now known as young offender institutions )

2. (formerly) a similar establishment in Australia and New Zealand

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Etymology

Origin of borstal

First recorded in 1905–10; named after Borstal, village in Kent, England

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

borstal

She feels that by reporting this or not lying for him for whatever – I don't think she imagines that he'll be going to borstal.

From Salon ● Feb. 20, 2023

Near Strawberry Field was the Gladstone merchant's mansion, named Woolton Vale, later to become Woolton Vale Remand Home, about which John's cousin Stanley declared that "the bad boys' borstal intrigued us."

From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2022

"I deplore his association with young borstal trainees and adult mentally ill patients," the SMO wrote.

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2019

Smith's prison is literal – the Essex borstal – and though running gives him a sense of freedom, the only way he can express it is by deliberately losing.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 5, 2010

"Welcome to borstal," she added, spraying bits of crisp out of her mouth like snowflakes.

From "Matilda" by Roald Dahl