as in captives
one that has been taken and held in confinement
the prisoners were fed only bread and water twice a day
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Recent Examples of prisoners
The prisoners quickly became a bargaining chip for Hanoi during the Paris peace talks, which had begun in April 1968.
—
Literary Hub, 14 May 2026
Cuba then made an offer to two of their higher profile prisoners, Maykel Castillo Pérez and Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara.
—Dana Taylor, USA Today, 14 May 2026
And then there was this bizarre claim about dogs being trained to rape prisoners, which is medically and scientifically not possible.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2026
The film crosses sites where camps once stood, setting them against diaries, memoirs and letters by prisoners.
—Callum McLennan, Variety, 11 May 2026
Zelenskyy said the exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each side is being prepared.
—ABC News, 11 May 2026
Russia and Ukraine also agreed to suspend all kinetic activity and exchange 1,000 prisoners each as part of the agreement.
—Carter Schroppe, The Washington Examiner, 10 May 2026
The poor conditions were also the backdrop for a push in 1980 by the New Progressive Party governor at the time, Carlos Romero Barceló, to codify voting rights for prisoners.
—Raquel Rutledge, ProPublica, 5 May 2026
Fitzpatrick said that most inmates in Texas prisons, including those serving a life sentence without parole for capital murder, are housed either in a dorm type of environment or in a cellbock with other prisoners.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 May 2026
Literary Hub, 14 May 2026
Cuba then made an offer to two of their higher profile prisoners, Maykel Castillo Pérez and Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara.
—Dana Taylor, USA Today, 14 May 2026
And then there was this bizarre claim about dogs being trained to rape prisoners, which is medically and scientifically not possible.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2026
The film crosses sites where camps once stood, setting them against diaries, memoirs and letters by prisoners.
—Callum McLennan, Variety, 11 May 2026
Zelenskyy said the exchange of 1,000 prisoners from each side is being prepared.
—ABC News, 11 May 2026
Russia and Ukraine also agreed to suspend all kinetic activity and exchange 1,000 prisoners each as part of the agreement.
—Carter Schroppe, The Washington Examiner, 10 May 2026
The poor conditions were also the backdrop for a push in 1980 by the New Progressive Party governor at the time, Carlos Romero Barceló, to codify voting rights for prisoners.
—Raquel Rutledge, ProPublica, 5 May 2026
Fitzpatrick said that most inmates in Texas prisons, including those serving a life sentence without parole for capital murder, are housed either in a dorm type of environment or in a cellbock with other prisoners.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prisoners
captives
Noun
-
Mohamed Soliman admitted to the attack on the Pearl Street Mall in June 2025 during a demonstration in support of Israeli captives held by Hamas, throwing two Molotov cocktails at the group, killing one person and injuring more than a dozen others.—
Sarah Horbacewicz,
CBS News,
8 May 2026
-
The story revolves around nine warriors who travel to Tsushima Island to rescue Korean captives kidnapped by Japanese pirates.—
Liz Shackleton,
Deadline,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Prisoners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prisoners. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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