Definition

1. Noun:
   • Imprisonment, incarceration: The state of being confined in prison as a legal punishment for a crime. It refers specifically to the penalty itself, not the place.
   • Prison sentence: The judicial act of sentencing someone to a term in prison.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Tòa án tuyên án phạm nhân mức ngục hình nặng nhất. (The court sentenced the criminal to the most severe imprisonment.)
  • Hình phạt cho tội đó có thể là ngục hình hoặc phạt tiền. (The penalty for that offense can be imprisonment or a fine.)

Advanced Usage

• "Chịu ngục hình": to serve a prison sentence, to undergo imprisonment.

  • Hắn phải chịu ngục hình 10 năm vì tội cướp. (He had to serve a 10-year imprisonment for robbery.)

• "Án ngục hình": a prison sentence verdict.

  • Bản án cuối cùng là án ngục hình có thời hạn. (The final verdict was a fixed-term prison sentence.)

Variants and Related Words

• Ngục tù (n): prison, jail (refers to the institution or the state of being imprisoned).

  • Cuộc vượt ngục khỏi nhà ngục tù đó đã gây chấn động. (The prison break from that jail caused a shock.)

• Tù hình (n): penal sentence, penalty of confinement (a more formal/legal synonym).

• Giam cầm (v/n): to imprison / imprisonment (focuses on the act of confining).

Synonyms

• Sự giam giữ: detention, confinement.
• Án tù: prison sentence.
• Sự bỏ tù: the act of putting someone in prison.

Notes on Meaning

• Primary Legal Term: "Ngục hình" is primarily a formal and legal term. In everyday conversation, words like "ở tù" (to be in prison) or "án tù" (prison sentence) are more common.
• Punishment vs. Place: It denotes the of being sent to prison, not the physical prison building (which is "nhà tù" or "ngục").
• Historical/Literary Use: The word "ngục" (prison) within the compound gives it a slightly classical or solemn tone, often found in legal documents, historical texts, or formal writing.

1. Imprisonment