ticket-of-leave

1 9.9

A permit that lets a prisoner live and work outside prison under rules

noun

Archaic

: permiso de salida

Many former prisoners struggled to find employment, even with a ticket-of-leave.

Examples

After serving ten years, the convict was granted a ticket-of-leave and allowed to work outside the prison.
His ticket-of-leave was revoked when he violated the conditions of his release.
He received a ticket-of-leave after serving five years.
The judge granted her a ticket-of-leave for good behavior.
After serving his time, he received a ticket-of-leave, allowing him to live outside prison under certain conditions.
The authorities explained the rules attached to his ticket-of-leave, which required him to check in weekly.
With his ticket-of-leave in hand, he felt a mix of freedom and responsibility as he adjusted to life outside.

Synonyms

parole

vsticket-of-leave

Specialized

416 6.7

Release from prison before the sentence ends if someone follows the rules

is an older formal permit once issued to convicts, not modern procedure

Antonyms

imprisonment

Formal

88 4.0

Being kept in prison as a punishment by law

Surface Forms

ticket-of-leave singular

tickets-of-leave plural

Morphology

ticket-of-leave = ticket + leave (semi-transparent) = of + ticket + leave

The phrase literally combines 'ticket' and 'leave' (a permit to be absent), but its specific historical/legal meaning (conditional release of convicts) is specialized and not fully predictable for learners.

Etymology

Ticket-of-leave is made from the common words ticket and leave, literally a paper 'permit' to go free. It was once a paper given to prisoners to let them live and work outside prison under rules, so today it means a conditional permit to leave.