correctional officer

American  

Or correction officer,

noun

1. an officer of a jail or prison, especially a guard.

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Etymology

Origin of correctional officer

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

During testimony last week, Tomas Rivers, a correctional officer from State Correctional Institution Huntingdon, where Mangione was first held, described conversations he had with the accused, according to Rolling Stone:

From Salon • Dec. 11, 2025

Is correctional officer the job someone applies for when they have made all the right life choices?

From Slate • Oct. 8, 2025

Average correctional officer vacancy rates for fiscal year 2023 were 30% for state-run facilities and 42% for CoreCivic facilities, which house over a third of Tennessee’s 19,000 prison inmates.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 18, 2023

But 20 minutes later the session was over, Ayham’s trial was postponed once more because, the judge said, the family had refused to cooperate with the boy’s court-appointed correctional officer.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 1, 2023

As is often the case, the correctional officer was fired but not criminally prosecuted.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Related Words

• prison guard