do time

Idioms  

1. Serve a prison sentence, as in Many of the gang members did time while they were still teenagers. This expression originated as underworld slang and is now standard usage. [c. 1860]

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Example Sentences

Mr Berry also said he would "do time" for Mrs Mills.

From BBC

It’s something life has evolved to do time and again.

From Slate

The deal included a 23-month jail sentence but in Spain, convicts do not usually do time for sentences under two years.

From BBC

The sunrise ambers and midnight blues of Joshua Cutts’s lighting design illuminate Michael’s states of mind as much as they do time and place.

From New York Times

Lewis Jr. said his father deserved to do time but he paid his debt by spending more years behind bars than someone would if they were arrested for the same crime today.

From Washington Post