Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word inmate. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word inmate, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say inmate in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word inmate you have here. The definition of the word inmate will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofinmate, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
he inmates of the coach, by numerous hard, painful joltings, and ponderous, dragging trundlings, are suddenly made sensible of some great change in the character of the road.
1916 July, Henry Yule & al., "Padre Maestro Fray Seb. Manrique in Bengal (1628–Sept. 11, 1629)", Bengal Past & Present, Vol. XIII, No. 25, p. 32:
P. della Valle writes in the same strain: "And these two, the palankins and the andors also differ from one another, for in the andor the cane which sustains it is, as it is in the reti, straight; whereas in the palankin, for the greater convenience of the inmate, and to give more room for raising his head, the cane is arched upwards like this, _∩_..."
Usage notes
Perhaps around 1970, television journalists began to use the word as a euphemism for prisoner, and this has become the primary, if not only, definition among younger generations. When speaking of persons receiving medical services, patient may be preferred instead.