牢狱

牢獄

láoyù

noun #10,506

Meanings

1 prison
2 jail

Characters

pen; prison; firm

prison; lawsuit

Examples

他因犯罪而身陷牢狱。

Tā yīn fànzuì ér shēn xiàn láoyù.

He ended up in prison because of his crimes.

牢狱之灾改变了他的一生。

Láoyù zhī zāi gǎibiàn le tā de yīshēng.

The ordeal of imprisonment changed his entire life.

Tips

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牢狱 is literary/formal. In daily speech, 监狱 (jiānyù) is the standard word for prison. 牢狱 often appears in set phrases like 牢狱之灾 (calamity of imprisonment).

Stroke Order

牢 láo

狱 yù