Definition of "reformatory" [re•form•a•to•ry]

• A penal institution for the discipline, reformation, and training of young or first offenders. Also called reform school. (noun)
• Reformative. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "This idea of the United Nations as a reformatory is an illusion."
• "Miss Susan B. Anthony, a well-known, indefatigable, and lifelong advocate of temperance, anti-slavery, and woman's rights, has been, since 1851, Mrs. Stanton's intimate associate in reformatory labors."
• "And he was sent to the Oklahoma state reformatory, which is within my jurisdiction."