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

Adjective

• apprehended
• arrested
• captured
• caught
• confined
• imprisoned
• incarcerated
• interned
• jailed

Noun

• capture
• internee
• 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

Varsity last year settled an $82.5 million antitrust class-action lawsuit brought by a class of cheer customers who alleged the company used monopolistic practices to exploit its captive market. —Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 18 June 2025

There are about 29,000 to 30,000 captive portfolio companies sitting in private equity funds that have yet to be monetized, and 50% of them are at least four years or so in terms of the investment cycle. —Megan Poinski, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025

Noun

Mario Espino, Jacob James Guest, and Joey Lawrence Eugene Young held Gadiel Leger captive, pouring hot sauce on him and demanding a ransom, according to court documents. —Miami Herald, 31 May 2025

The team tested ten different approaches on 200-year-old human brain tissue recovered from Bristol’s former Blackberry Hill Hospital, once a Victorian workhouse and originally a prison for 18th-century war captives. —Jenny Lehmann, Discover Magazine, 30 May 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