workhouse
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work·house
(wûrk′hous′)n.
1. A prison in which limited sentences are served at manual labor.
2. Chiefly British A poorhouse.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
workhouse
(ˈwɜːkˌhaʊs)n
1. (Law) (formerly in England) an institution maintained at public expense where able-bodied paupers did unpaid work in return for food and accommodation
2. (Law) (in the US) a prison for petty offenders serving short sentences at manual labour
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
work•house
(ˈwɜrkˌhaʊs)n., pl. -hous•es (-ˌhaʊ zɪz)
1. a house of correction in which the prisoners are required to work.
2. Brit. a poorhouse.
[1645–55]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Noun | 1. | workhouse - a poorhouse where able-bodied poor are compelled to labor poorhouse - an establishment maintained at public expense in order to provide housing for the poor and homeless Britain, Great Britain, U.K., UK, United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland - a monarchy in northwestern Europe occupying most of the British Isles; divided into England and Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland; `Great Britain' is often used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom |
2. | workhouse - a county jail that holds prisoners for periods up to 18 months |
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