What it means
حبس (habs) means imprisonment, detention, or a custodial sentence. It is borrowed directly from Arabic, from the root ح-ب-س (h-b-s), meaning to detain or confine. In Persian legal language, habs is the formal noun for a prison sentence, as in حبس ابد (habs-e abad, life imprisonment) or حبس تعزیری (habs-e ta’ziri, discretionary imprisonment). The everyday word for prison itself is زندان (zendân), which is pure Persian, while habs refers more specifically to the act or sentence of confinement. A close synonym in formal contexts is بازداشت (bâzdâsht), though bâzdâsht usually means short-term pre-trial detention rather than a full sentence.
How to use it
- به پنج سال حبس محکوم شد. (be panj sâl habs mahkum shod.) “He was sentenced to five years in prison.”
- حبس ابد بهش دادن. (habs-e abad behesh dâdan.) “They gave him a life sentence.”
- بازداشت موقت با حبس فرق داره. (bâzdâsht-e movaqat bâ habs farq dâre.) “Pre-trial detention is different from a prison sentence.”
- قاضی رأی به حبس تعلیقی داد. (qâzi ra’y be habs-e ta’liqi dâd.) “The judge issued a suspended sentence.”
Cultural note
In verdicts and official court documents in Iran, the phrasing محکوم به حبس (mahkum be habs, sentenced to imprisonment) is standard legal formula. The compound حبس ابد (habs-e abad) for life imprisonment carries particular cultural weight in high-profile political and criminal trials covered in Iranian media. Learners reading Iranian legal reporting will encounter habs constantly alongside مجازات (mojâzât) and حکم (hokm, ruling), so recognising this cluster is key to understanding court news.