Prison Slang Through the Years: Common Terms Behind Bars

By
, Staff Writer
Updated May 5, 2021
prison slang words prisoner jail cell
  • DESCRIPTION
    prison slang words
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    Halfdark / Getty
  • PERMISSION
    Used under Getty Images license

Are you looking to expand your vocabulary with some real-world prison lingo? Explore these categorized examples of prison slang to learn a broad selection of these types of terms.

Prison Slang for Sentence Length, Charges and Convictions

There are a lot of slang terms used to refer to an inmate's prison sentence, as well as to charges and convictions.

  • 12/12 - serving your full sentence (no parole)
  • all day - a life sentence
  • all day and a night - a life sentence without the possibility of parole
  • back door parole - dying in prison
  • beef - what a person in prison was charged with
  • bow - a life sentence
  • Buck Rogers time - a release or parole date that is very far off in the future
  • bullet - a one-year prison sentence
  • bum beef - a wrongful conviction or false accusation
  • cat nap - a short prison sentence
  • c.c. - consecutive prison sentences
  • dime - ten-year prison sentence
  • doing the Dutch - committing suicide in prison
  • kickstand - an alternate term for a life sentence
  • l-wop - life without parole
  • nickel - five-year prison sentence
  • on paper - official length of one's prison sentence
  • skid bid - a very short prison sentence
  • teardrop - a ten-year prison sentence

Slang Terms for Inmates

Inmates can be referred to by a variety of different slang terms based on their individual circumstances.

  • agitator - a prisoner who seeks to manipulate other inmates to fight with each other
  • bam bam - a prisoner who is a psychiatric patient
  • bunkie - one's cellmate
  • cellie - an alternate name for one's cellmate
  • cell warrior - an inmate who acts tough from behind bars, but is meek in face-to-face encounters
  • diaper sniper - an inmate who has been accused or convicted of child molestation
  • dotted up - tattooed prisoner
  • dump truck - a sedentary and lazy inmate who is also overweight
  • fiend - person who is addicted to something (drug fiend, sex fiend, etc.)
  • fish - new inmates at a men's prison
  • fresh meat - new inmates arriving at the prison
  • frequent flyer - someone who is repeatedly in and out of prison
  • jit/jitterbug - big-mouthed gossipy inmate who causes trouble
  • June bug - a weak prisoner under the control of other prisoners
  • lame duck - a weaker prisoner on their own
  • new booties - people who are in prison for the very first time
  • o.g. - original gangsta (gangster); used for inmates who've been inside for a long time
  • slugs - inmates who barely leave their cells
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Prison Facility Slang Terms

There are distinct slang terms for certain areas within a prison.

  • bean slot - place in a cell door that food trays are passed through
  • cage - an individual prison cell
  • chronic - unit within a prison that houses inmates with chronic discipline problems
  • ding wing - psychiatric ward of a prison
  • education - places where classes are taught and books can be checked out
  • gen pop - general population portion of the prison
  • hot water - a warning to behave because a guard is nearby
  • house - a prison cell
  • in the cut - an area out of view of security cameras and guards
  • iron pile - weight lifting equipment
  • lockdown - when inmates have to all be locked in their cells due to a threat or incident
  • mando - something that is mandatory or required
  • on the count - lining up for an inmate head count
  • on the door - prepare to leave your cell, such as to go to the mess hall for a meal
  • protective custody - when a prisoner is removed from gen pop for their protection from other inmates
  • quiet time - evening hours after lights are turned off and noise must be minimized
  • shakedown - when prison staff searches cells for contraband
  • store - the commissary where inmates can buy merchandise
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Slang for Prison Activities and Behaviors

Various activities and behaviors that take place within a prison also have their own slang terminology.

  • Cadillac job - a desirable job among the various prison work duty assignments
  • calling the cops - creating a scene so as to attract the attention of the guards
  • catch a ride - to get high by using someone else's drugs
  • chalking - distracting a corrections officer so another inmate can get away with something
  • chatted out - someone who has gone crazy while in prison
  • chin check - punching another prisoner in the jaw to find out if the person will fight back when provoked
  • crossed out - unfair removal of a prisoner from a good area to a bad one
  • ctq - initialism abbreviation for confined to quarters
  • dinner and a show - term for being in the dining hall for dinner when other inmates start fighting
  • drop a slip - ratting out an inmate for something in writing by using the request dropbox
  • dry snitching - indirectly snitching by talking loudly about another prisoner so guards will overhear
  • fair one - a fair fight, fought without weapons
  • fishing line - cloth or string tied together used to pass contraband to inmates in other cells
  • fishing pole - rolled up newspaper with a paper clip on the end used to remove contraband from fishing line
  • getting buzzed - getting a prison tattoo
  • green light - permission to kill an individual or member of a rival gang
  • kite - contraband note passed to other inmates
  • rec - the time prisoners are allowed to leave their cells for exercise/recreation
  • yard - area for outdoor recreation
  • yard time - being allowed to spend time in the outdoor recreation area
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Prison Slang for Items and Apparel

There are several slang terms for items that find their way into prisons, as well as for the apparel that inmates wear.

  • bats - cigarettes; smokes
  • binky - a homemade syringe
  • bobos - plain, unmarked sneakers issued to prisoners
  • brogans - workboots issued for prisoners to wear
  • bundle - a small package filled with contraband
  • clavo - dangerous contraband
  • keister - smuggling in contraband in one's anus
  • kung fu joes - poorly made prison shoes issued to inmates
  • peels - orange prison jumpsuits
  • shank - a stabbing weapon made by a prisoner
  • shiv - an alternate term for a shank

Slang for Prison Personnel

Prisoners often use code terms and slang to refer to prison employees, as well as standard police slang.

  • 5-0 - code for a corrections officer
  • 6-5 - code indicating that a corrections officer is drawing near
  • 911 - caution that a corrections officer is drawing near
  • badge - a corrections officer working in a prison
  • bling bling - warning that corrections officers are approaching
  • boss - correctional officer working as a prison guard
  • cowboy - a corrections officer who is new to the job
  • duck - gullible corrections officer who can be bribed or manipulated to help get contraband in
  • kitty kitty - a female correctional officer
  • ratchette - a nurse who works in a prison
  • robocop - stickler guard who records even the most minor infractions
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Now that you are familiar with many common prison slang words, take a look at some gangster slang from the 1920s. This will provide you with a unique historical perspective on crime-related slang. From there, explore a selection of slang words for jail. After that, if you're hungry for even more information, review these examples of slang words from the past and today.