The Big House
Slang for jail
The Big House is slang for prison, especially a state or federal penitentiary: He spent ten years in the big house.
The term dates to early 20th-century American slang and carries a slightly old-fashioned or humorous tone.
In other contexts, the big house may simply refer to a mansion or the main residence on an estate.
- mansionLarge, stately home
- stately homeLarge historic aristocratic residence
- prisonConfinement for offenders
- penitentiaryFacility for convicted criminals
- maximum securityHighest-level prison classification
estate · manor · old money · family estate · jail · slammer · pen · lockup · behind bars · hard time · warden · inmates · bars · cell · grounds · iron gates · gates · wealthy
- Football StadiumsMemorial Stadium, Notre Dame Stadium, Rose Bowl, The Swamp, Death Valley
- Washtenaw CountyAnn Arbor, Chelsea, Milan, Manchester, University of Michigan
The Big Housefreedom
Absence of constraint
home · civilian life · liberty · open society · free world
The Big Househalfway house
Transitional residence for recovery
minimum security · work release · house arrest · probation · parole
bigger, biggest, house, houses, housed, housing, housekeeper, household, housewife