panopticon.

A building design allowing a central observer to survey surrounding occupants, especially prisoners.

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Words that belong together

• prison panopticon

On the page

The prison followed a panopticon design.

The panopticon’s central tower overlooked the cells.

Usage notes

Primary category: setting. Forms: Singular panopticon; plural panopticons. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.