penal servitude

American

noun

English Criminal Law.

imprisonment together with hard labor.

penal servitude British

noun

English criminal law (formerly) the imprisonment of an offender and his subjection to hard labour. It was substituted for transportation in 1853 and abolished in 1948 Compare hard labour

"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

Etymology

Origin of penal servitude

First recorded in 1855–60

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.

Penal servitude now strikes us as a barbaric throwback to some long-lost moment that preceded the industrial revolution, but in that we’re wrong.

From Salon • May 25, 2012

"Penal servitude," she muttered, blowing out the smoke and sobbing.

From Resurrection by Maude, Louise Shanks

Penal servitude would have suited your book; but the scaffold!…

From The Eight Strokes of the Clock by Leblanc, Maurice

Penal servitude, which in 1853 was substituted for transportation to penal settlements outside the United Kingdom.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 6 "Coucy-le-Château" to "Crocodile" by Various

Penal servitude will only be like waiting for her at a wayside station.

From The Innocence of Father Brown by Chesterton, G. K. (Gilbert Keith)

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