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服役

ふくえき

serving a prison sentence

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. 彼は十年間服役した。

    かれはじゅうねんかんふくえきした。

    He served ten years in prison.

  2. 兄は今も服役中だ。

    あにはいまもふくえきちゅうだ。

    My older brother is still serving his sentence.

  3. 服役を終えて、彼は仕事を探し始めた。

    ふくえきをおえて、かれはしごとをさがしはじめた。

    After finishing his sentence, he started looking for work.

  4. 服役していた人が社会に戻るのは簡単ではない。

    ふくえきしていたひとがしゃかいにもどるのはかんたんではない。

    It is not easy for someone who has served time to return to society.

Common patterns

服役中
while serving a sentence
服役を終える
to finish serving one's sentence
刑務所で服役する
to serve time in prison

Memory tip

服 here is not clothing but 'to submit to', and 役 is a duty, so 服役 is submitting to the duty imposed by a sentence. 懲役 is the sentence the court hands down; 服役 is the act of serving it.

Kanji in this word

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What does 服役 mean?