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correctional

American  
[kuh-rek-shuh-nl] / kəˈrɛk ʃə nl /

adjective

  1. of or relating to correction, especially to penal correction.

correctional British  
/ kəˈrɛkʃənəl /

adjective

  1. of or relating to the punishment and rehabilitation of criminals

    a correctional facility
"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

Other Word Forms

  • noncorrectional noun

Etymology

Origin of correctional

First recorded in 1830–40; correction + -al 1

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.

The Safer Skies Act expanded that mandate to roughly 18,000 law-enforcement agencies and 6,000 correctional facilities across the country.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026

It’s meant to evoke a different feel than what he described as bleak correctional settings marked by dirt fields and high walls.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2026

The Brentwood, Tenn., company also landed contracts with ICE at a 1,033-bed reception center in Kansas and a 2,160-bed correctional facility in Oklahoma.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 11, 2026

Konate said that the investigating judge in Gassama's case had Tuesday issued an order declaring there was sufficient evidence for him to be tried by the correctional court.

From Barron's • Dec. 30, 2025

I was escorted to a forty-by-forty-foot room where more than two dozen incarcerated men sat sadly while uniformed correctional staff buzzed in and out.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.