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

See Examples For:

do time

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

From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2024

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

From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2024

"What we found were good changes in gene expression in these individuals which now gives us some idea what to expect when people with obesity do time restricted eating."

From Salon ● Jan. 25, 2023

They have the rhythmic acuity to walk around clapping in counterpoint or do time steps in canon but not a tap dancer’s charisma and cool.

From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2022

When I have a lot to do, time shrinks, but when I want something over with, it stretches and yawns, and laughs at my torture.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff