as in imprisoned
taken and held prisoner
the captive soldiers were treated humanely by the guards
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in prisoner
one that has been taken and held in confinement
the captives in the concentration camp had devised a daring plan of escape
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of captive
Wafaa Shurafa, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2025
Reports of Ukrainian foreign fighters taken captive by Russian forces have already surfaced.
—Rebecca Johns, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Amelie Botbol, FOXNews.com, 30 Aug. 2025
By nightfall, Liat and Aviv were captives in Gaza along with 250 other people – 12 of whom, like Liat, were American citizens.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for captive
Adjective
Michel Iluz, whose son Guy Iluz was killed while captive in Gaza, shouted into the microphone at the Jerusalem protest, the pain in his voice mounting to a howl.
—Wafaa Shurafa, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2025
Reports of Ukrainian foreign fighters taken captive by Russian forces have already surfaced.
—Rebecca Johns, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
Noun
Israeli estimates indicate that 48 captives remain in the Strip.
—Amelie Botbol, FOXNews.com, 30 Aug. 2025
By nightfall, Liat and Aviv were captives in Gaza along with 250 other people – 12 of whom, like Liat, were American citizens.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for captive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captive
prisoner
Noun
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Every trip to the electric chair is horrifying; a sequence where an intentionally botched execution ignites a still-living prisoner's screaming head in ghoulish blue flames is up there with any supernatural fright King's ever conceived.—
James Grebey,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
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Belarus' state news agency Belta said the prisoners freed on Thursday included 14 foreign nationals from Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, France, Britain and Germany.—
Andrius Sytas,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Captive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captive. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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