noun phrase · neutral
community service
UK/kəˈmjuːnɪti ˈsɜːvɪs/US/kəˈmjunɪti ˈsɜrvɪs/com·MU·ni·ty SERV·ice
Unpaid work that an offender is ordered to do for the community instead of, or in addition to, prison.
Examples
“Instead of jail, the judge ordered him to do 100 hours of community service.”
“Many young offenders are given community service to help them understand the impact of their actions.”
“Volunteering is different from community service because the latter is usually court-ordered.”
Band 8 sentence
“For minor, non-violent offences many courts prefer to order community service so offenders can make tangible reparation to society while avoiding prison.”
Collocations
- do community service
- be sentenced to community service
Word family
Common mistakes
a community service→community service
do volunteer work (when meant court-ordered)→do community service
Say it for a higher band
5volunteer work→6unpaid work→7+community service
Synonyms
unpaid work
Easily confused
voluntary work
“Many students do voluntary work during their summer break.”
Related words
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In Crime & Law
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