parole

¹ American  

[puh-rohl] / pəˈroʊl /

noun

1. Penology.

   1. the conditional release of a person from prison prior to the end of the maximum sentence imposed.

   2. such release or its duration.

   3. an official document authorizing such a release.

2. Military.

   1. the promise, usually written, of a prisoner of war, that if released they either will return to custody at a specified time or will not again take up arms against their captors.

   2. (formerly) any password given by authorized personnel in passing by a guard.

3. word of honor given or pledged.

4. (in U.S. immigration laws) the temporary admission of non-U.S. citizens into the United States for emergency reasons or on grounds considered in the public interest, as authorized by and at the discretion of the attorney general.

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verb (used with object)

paroled, paroling

1. to place or release on parole.

2. to admit (a non-U.S. citizen) into the United States for emergency reasons or on grounds considered in the public interest.

   An increased number of Hungarian refugees were paroled into the United States.

adjective

1. of or relating to parole or parolees.

   a parole record.

parole ² American  

[pa-rawl] / paˈrɔl /

noun

French.

1. language as manifested in the actual utterances produced by speakers of a language (langue ).

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parole British  

/ pəˈrəʊl, pəˌrəʊˈliː /

noun

1. 1. the freeing of a prisoner before his sentence has expired, on the condition that he is of good behaviour

   2. the duration of such conditional release

2. a promise given by a prisoner, as to be of good behaviour if granted liberty or partial liberty

3. a variant spelling of parol

4. military a password

5. linguistics language as manifested in the individual speech acts of particular speakers Compare langue performance competence

6. 1. conditionally released from detention

   2. informal (of a person) under scrutiny, esp for a recurrence of an earlier shortcoming

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verb

1. to place (a person) on parole

Other Word Forms

• parolable adjective
• parolee noun
• unparolable adjective
• unparoled adjective

Etymology

Origin of parole

First recorded in 1610–20; from Middle French, short for parole d'honneur “word of honor”. See parol

Example Sentences

Shapiro said Hochman is unlikely to consider a punishment less than life without the possibility of parole, since he has already alleged special circumstances.

From Los Angeles Times

Her sentence will be backdated to 1 June, and she'll be eligible for parole after serving two years of her sentence.

From BBC

Disciplinary infractions remain part of an incarcerated individual’s permanent record and affect their chances of parole or resentencing.

From Los Angeles Times

Wafa, now 28, qualified for humanitarian parole, which grants individuals access to the U.S. temporarily for urgent humanitarian reasons, and later received asylum.

From The Wall Street Journal

According to court and jail records, Adams was detained by the California Department of Corrections on a possible parole violation in February 2024.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• let out
• liberate
• pardon