CAPTOR Synonyms: 19 Similar and Opposite Words

captor

noun

Definition of captor

as in warden

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of captor In 2013, three women who had been kidnapped and held for years are found alive at their captor’s home in Cleveland, Ohio. — Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026 In March 1980, 14-year-old Steven Stayner walked into a Ukiah police station with a 5-year-old boy who had recently been kidnapped by his captor. — Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 4 May 2026 The captors demanded access to a safe, computer, and online accounts holding cryptocurrency, the indictment read. — Jeramie Bizzle, CBS News, 28 Apr. 2026 Her captors forced her to record a video reading from a script containing false accusations. — Ricardo Torres, jsonline.com, 23 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for captor

Recent Examples of Synonyms for captor

Noun

There is no word on when the search for a new warden will commence.

— Christopher DeRose, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
But to Bill Donnelly, the service’s warden, New Jersey’s fire season, like North America’s, can feel unending.

— Robert Sullivan, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of warden

Noun

On the Duke’s side, Joely Richardson is back as Eddie’s mother Lady Sabrina, Daniel Ings as disinherited older brother Freddy, Jasmine Blackborow as sister Charly and Vinnie Jones as Geoff, keeper of the grounds – and family secrets.

— K.J. Yossman, Variety, 24 Aug. 2026
Morché is the first keeper in club history to record a clean sheet in her debut.

— Orlando Sentinel Staff, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of keeper

Noun

The Christiana Riot, also known as the Christiana Resistance, occurred in Christiana, Pennsylvania, where free Black people and escaped slaves successfully resisted a federal marshal’s raid to capture four fugitive slaves.

— USA Today, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026
While Nixon wasn’t well-known nationally, her background as a union organizer, and as executive director for Florida For All, a voter recruitment nonprofit, helped her marshal a statewide network of campaign supporters.

— Jeffrey Schweers, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of marshal

Noun

More from this past week • A transgender woman who works as a custodian at the University of Kansas was reported for using the wrong restroom under a new state law.

— Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 12 Aug. 2026
Zuckerberg is referencing OpenAI and Anthropic, which operate on the premise that hyper-smart AI is both inevitable and apocalyptic—and therefore safe only in the hands of the wisest custodians (themselves).

— Will Oremus, The Atlantic, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of custodian

Browse Nearby Words

captivity

captor

captors

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Captor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captor. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of captor

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

southpaw

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes