as in reformative
serving to raise or adjust something to some standard or proper condition
the belief that manual labor was a reformatory experience for convicted felons, who would learn the value of hard work
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in reform school
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reformatory
Mara Bovsun, New York Daily News, 9 Feb. 2025
Bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he’s sentenced to the netherworld of Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory sunk deep in the Jim Crow South.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 13 Dec. 2024
JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
His mother sent him to the Élan School in Maine, a reformatory boarding institution with extreme forms of discipline, including shouting sessions and boxing matches, that attracted widespread criticism and that led to the school’s closing in 2011.
—Alex Traub, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for reformatory
Adjective
Her behavior became so outrageous and uncontrollable that her family arranged to send her to a girls’ reformatory.
—Mara Bovsun, New York Daily News, 9 Feb. 2025
Bearing the brunt of an innocent misstep, he’s sentenced to the netherworld of Nickel Academy, a brutal reformatory sunk deep in the Jim Crow South.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 13 Dec. 2024
Noun
While Spanish Catholicism and reformatory Protestantism favored black clothing, much of the Renaissance happened in an explosion of color.
—JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024
His mother sent him to the Élan School in Maine, a reformatory boarding institution with extreme forms of discipline, including shouting sessions and boxing matches, that attracted widespread criticism and that led to the school’s closing in 2011.
—Alex Traub, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for reformatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reformatory
Adjective
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Fifty-five years after Martin Luther King's death, African Americans continue to proudly honor his reformative legacy in Phoenix.—
The Arizona Republic,
The Arizona Republic,
14 Jan. 2024
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While the idea of hiring actors might raise some eyebrows, acting and artistry can be an important step in the reformative process, and Hemsworth suggested that the actors’ real-life experiences helped shape their on-screen characters.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
5 Dec. 2023
Noun
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The film follows a pivotal day in the life of headteacher Steve (Murphy, 49) and his students at a last-chance reform school amidst a world that has forsaken them.—
Jen Juneau,
People.com,
24 June 2025
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Set in the mid-1990s, Steve follows a pivotal day in the life of the titular headteacher and his students at a last-chance reform school amidst a world that has forsaken them.—
Nancy Tartaglione,
Deadline,
24 June 2025
Adjective
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These professionals must develop grading systems, track analytics and guide corrective actions.—
Hayley Bakker,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
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People who don't know what the problem is cannot take any corrective action.—
Meredith Wilshere,
People.com,
20 July 2025
Noun
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This season’s cast includes a professional bull rider, event curator, marketing manager, AI consultant, aura painter, attorney, dungeon master, and a mysterious Houseguest who will be revealed later.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
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Among the 16 all-new Houseguests competing for the $750,000 grand prize this summer are an aura painter, a dungeon master and a professional bull rider.—
Carson Blackwelder,
People.com,
8 July 2025
Noun
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Ground was broken on a 51-acre site in Elk Grove Village, which was just 5 miles away from O’Hare International Airport, for United Airlines’ headquarters and training schools.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
23 June 2025
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Adam Penner, president of Harv’s Air pilot training school, said the two students, a man and a woman, were practicing takeoffs and landings.—
Muri Assunção,
New York Daily News,
9 July 2025
Noun
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Polar gulags are also the preferred place to send political prisoners who threaten the government, such as the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died under suspicious circumstances in one such prison in 2024.—
Michael Albertus,
Foreign Affairs,
24 June 2025
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Assad stayed in power by killing his own people, deploying chemical weapons and Russian bombs, and torturing and murdering them in an underground network of gulags.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
14 May 2025
Noun
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One is a stony oubliette with crystals growing out of the walls.—
Erin Alberty,
Axios,
6 Jan. 2025
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One is a stony oubliette with crystals growing out of the walls.—
Erin Alberty,
Axios,
6 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Working hard to earn your keep is a boundary that Perry has set across the board, even with his 10-year-old son, Aman.—
Amber Corrine,
VIBE.com,
22 July 2025
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Commercial outlets survive by earning their keep — not by relying on subsidies that every citizen is compelled to support.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reformatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reformatory. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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