1
: a person deprived of liberty and kept under involuntary restraint, confinement, or custody
especially
: one on trial or in prison
2
: someone restrained as if in prison
a prisoner of her own conscience
see also take-no-prisoners, take no prisoners
Examples of prisoner in a Sentence
He was captured by rebel forces and kept as their prisoner for several months before they set him free.
The families were held prisoner for four days.
Recent Examples on the Web
The series tells the story of Lali (Hauer-King), a Slovakian Jew who was deported to Auschwitz, the concentration camp where over a million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, and who was charged with inking ID numbers on fellow prisoners’ arms.
—
Chris Willman, Variety, 17 Apr. 2024
The number of prisoners executed by Graham has been a point of contention for critics, who speculate that Graham escalated the pace during election years.
—David Smiley, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
It was printed at a press that was operated by prisoners.
—John J. Lennon, The New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2024
And so, already, judges have begun releasing prisoners who had perhaps the single obstruction charge and also misdemeanor convictions in their trials already.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2024
In spite of the execution moratorium, courts have continued to sentence California prisoners to death.
—Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee, 9 Apr. 2024
Israel releases 240 Palestinians held as prisoners.
—Victoria Bisset, Washington Post, 7 Apr. 2024
The association filed a petition on behalf of the prisoners to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, an OAS group.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024
So in 2018, Stockton changed the pre-recorded greeting for outgoing prisoner calls to family and friends.
—Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 2 Apr. 2024
Chris Willman, Variety, 17 Apr. 2024
The number of prisoners executed by Graham has been a point of contention for critics, who speculate that Graham escalated the pace during election years.
—David Smiley, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
It was printed at a press that was operated by prisoners.
—John J. Lennon, The New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2024
And so, already, judges have begun releasing prisoners who had perhaps the single obstruction charge and also misdemeanor convictions in their trials already.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 12 Apr. 2024
In spite of the execution moratorium, courts have continued to sentence California prisoners to death.
—Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee, 9 Apr. 2024
Israel releases 240 Palestinians held as prisoners.
—Victoria Bisset, Washington Post, 7 Apr. 2024
The association filed a petition on behalf of the prisoners to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, an OAS group.
—Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024
So in 2018, Stockton changed the pre-recorded greeting for outgoing prisoner calls to family and friends.
—Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 2 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'prisoner.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Prisoner.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prisoner. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
prisoner
noun
pris·on·er
ˈpriz-nər 
-ᵊn-ər
: a person who has been captured or locked up
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