Inmate

In′mateˊ

(ĭn′mātˊ)

,

Noun.

[

In

+

mate

an associate.]

One who lives in the same house or apartment with another; a fellow lodger;

esp.,

one of the occupants of an asylum, hospital, or prison;

by extension,

one who occupies or lodges in any place or dwelling.

So spake the enemy of mankind, inclos’d
In serpent,

inmate

bad.

Milton.

In′mateˊ

,

Adj.

Admitted as a dweller; resident; internal.

[R.]

“Inmate guests.”

Milton.

Inmate

IN'MATE

,

Noun.

[in or inn, and mate.] A person who lodges or dwells in the same house with another, occupying different rooms, but using the same door for passing in and out of the house.

1.

A lodger; one who lives with a family, but is not otherwise connected with it than as a lodger.

IN'MATE

,

Adj.

Admitted as a dweller.

inmate

English

Noun

inmate ‎(plural inmates)

A person confined to an institution such as a prison (as a convict) or hospital (as a patient)
A person who occupies or dwells within a dwelling-house. The word came to be used to refer to temporary inhabitants such as guests in a hotel, students in an on-campus dormitory, patients in a hospital, or prisoners.

Usage notes

Perhaps around 1970, television journalists began to use the word as a euphemism for "prisoner", and today perhaps many young people cannot remember that it ever had any other meaning.