Synonyms of captive

captive 1 of 2

adjective

ˈkap-tiv 

as in imprisoned

taken and held prisoner

the captive soldiers were treated humanely by the guards

Synonyms & Similar Words

• imprisoned
• arrested
• captured
• jailed
• interned
• incarcerated
• confined
• kidnapped
• enslaved
• caught
• trapped
• behind bars
• apprehended
• bound
• abducted
• indentured
• occupied
• subdued
• subjugated
• ensnared

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• free
• unrestrained
• unconfined
• released
• liberated
• freed
• emancipated
• delivered
• paroled
• enfranchised

captive

2 of 2

noun

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

• prisoner
• capture
• internee
• convict
• jailbird
• arrestee
• abductee
• coprisoner
• kidnappee

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• guard
• captor
• guardian
• keeper
• warden
• marshal
• custodian
• jailer
• kidnapper
• abductor

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of captive

Adjective

The present-day framing takes place on the island where an exhausted Odysseus (Matt Damon) washed up 10 years after the Battle of Troy, and is now held captive by the nymph Calypso (Charlize Theron). — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 23 July 2026

By the time the film gets back to the subject of wolves, von Carolsfeld has abruptly stopped framing her captive humans as wildlife. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 22 July 2026

Noun

On a day in mid-July, three men kidnapped a bus full of schoolchildren and forced their captives into an underground bunker where they were buried alive. — James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 4 June 2026

From France’s port cities, dozens of ships sailed for Africa every year, where merchants purchased human captives to be sold in the colonies. — Jeremy D. Popkin, The Conversation, 28 May 2026