hostage

noun

hos·​tage ˈhä-stij 

1

a

: a person held by one party in a conflict as a pledge pending the fulfillment of an agreement

b

: a person taken by force to secure the taker's demands

2

: one that is involuntarily controlled by an outside influence

Examples of hostage in a Sentence

The terrorists demanded a plane and a pilot in exchange for the hostages.

The hostage crisis is now entering its second week.

The passengers were taken hostage.

They were held hostage for several days.

Recent Examples on the Web

The army said the assailants were forced to abandon the abduction of 31 hostages after troops responded to a distress call. —ABC News, 6 Apr. 2026

The rescue spares the US potential messy hostage negotiations that may have occurred if the US airman had been captured by Iran. —Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 5 Apr. 2026

Two of Gutierrez’s nieces were held hostage alongside him. —Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 4 Apr. 2026

Maybe the gravity of the killings in Minnesota justified taking the whole government hostage all along. —Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English hostage, ostage, borrowed from Anglo-French, "lodging, residence, custody of a person held as security against fulfillment of an agreement, the person so held," from hoste "guest, host" + -age -age — more at host entry 1

Note: The peculiar sense shift apparently arose from the Old French use of hostage in verbal phrases such as prendre en hostage "to take in residence, lodge" in reference to the lodging of a person held as surety; the import of hostage was then transferred to the status of such a person, and finally to the actual person.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing hostage

• a hostage to fortune
• hostage crisis

Kids Definition

hostage

noun

hos·​tage ˈhäs-tij 

: a person held captive as a pledge that promises will be kept or terms met by another