captive

1 of 2

adjective

cap·​tive ˈkap-tiv 

1

a

: taken and held as or as if a prisoner of war

b(1)

: kept within bounds : confined

(2)

: of or relating to captive animals

captive breeding

2

: held under control of another but having the appearance of independence

especially : owned or controlled by another concern and operated for its needs rather than for an open market

a captive mine

3

: being such involuntarily because of a situation that makes free choice or departure difficult

a captive audience

captive

2 of 2

noun

plural captives

1

: one who has been captured : one taken and held usually in confinement

Something there is in us that finds captivity captivating, particularly when the captives are prisoners of war.

—David Murray

He said that while one of the war-boats was being made ready to take the captives into the lagoon, he and his sister left the camp quietly and got away in their canoe.

—Joseph Conrad

2

: one captivated, dominated, or controlled

a captive to love

Unlike so many experts pronouncing on that subject today, though, he has never been a captive of a particular ideology or of a well-heeled interest group.

—Uwe E. Reinhardt

Crescent City residents love their culinary customs—too much, according to some critics, who complain that the city's chefs are captives of the past.

—Mitch Frank

Synonyms of captive

Adjective

• imprisoned
• arrested
• captured
• jailed
• interned

Noun

• prisoner

Examples of captive in a Sentence

Adjective

The captive soldiers planned their escape.

the captive soldiers were treated humanely by the guards

Noun

the captives in the concentration camp had devised a daring plan of escape

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

While the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians goes back decades, the recent war erupted on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out attacks on Israel that left some 1,200 dead and took 251 hostages captive. —Jason Lemon, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Dec. 2025

In the novel, Percy embarks on a dangerous journey to rescue Grover, who is on a quest to find the god Pan but is captured by the same Cyclops that once held Odysseus captive. —Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 29 Nov. 2025

Noun

Most importantly, this resistance is thought to have significantly reduced the number of captives transported across the Atlantic. —Literary Hub, 5 Dec. 2025

In Empire City, when a hostage crisis erupts inside New York’s landmark Clybourn Building, firefighter Rhett (Butler), his squad, and his NYPD wife Dani (Atwell) must fight and navigate their way through the building to rescue the captives. —Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 6 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Latin captivus, from captus, past participle of capere

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing captive

• captive audience

Rhymes for captive

• adaptive
• maladaptive

Kids Definition

captive

1 of 2 adjective

cap·​tive

ˈkap-tiv

1

: taken and held prisoner especially in war

2

: held or confined so as to prevent escape

a captive animal

3

: in a situation that makes free choice or leaving difficult

the airline passengers were a captive audience

captivity

kap-ˈtiv-ət-ē

noun

captive

2 of 2 noun

: one that is captive : prisoner