зек

uncommon #7727

nounmasculineanimatecountable

1.
convict, prisoner, inmate
Зе́ки строили доро́гу че́рез тайгу́.
The convicts were building a road through the taiga.
Slang, originally from Gulag jargon; also spelled «зэк».

Usage info

The terms зк, зек / зэк, зека are derived from 'Заключённый каналоармеец', which means a labor convict of a Gulag of the Stalin era.

Зеки работали в поле весь день.
The convicts worked in the field all day.
Он рассказывал, как жили зека на Севере.
He talked about how the convicts lived in the North.
Бывший зека долго не мог найти работу.
The former convict was unable to find work for a long time.
В лагере зека работали с утра до ночи.
In the camp, the inmates worked from morning till night.
Старый зек рассказал свою историю.
The old convict told his story.
В лагере было много зеков.
There were many convicts in the camp.