How does the verb ransom contrast with its synonyms?
Some common synonyms of ransom are deliver, reclaim, redeem, rescue, and save. While all these words mean "to set free from confinement or danger," ransom specifically applies to buying out of captivity.
tried to ransom the kidnap victim
When is deliver a more appropriate choice than ransom?
The words deliver and ransom are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, deliver implies release usually of a person from confinement, temptation, slavery, or suffering.
delivered his people from bondage
In what contexts can reclaim take the place of ransom?
The meanings of reclaim and ransom largely overlap; however, reclaim suggests a bringing back to a former state or condition of someone or something abandoned or debased.
reclaimed long-abandoned farms
When is it sensible to use redeem instead of ransom?
The synonyms redeem and ransom are sometimes interchangeable, but redeem implies releasing from bondage or penalties by giving what is demanded or necessary.
job training designed to redeem school dropouts from chronic unemployment
When might rescue be a better fit than ransom?
In some situations, the words rescue and ransom are roughly equivalent. However, rescue implies freeing from imminent danger by prompt or vigorous action.
rescued the crew of a sinking ship
Where would save be a reasonable alternative to ransom?
The words save and ransom can be used in similar contexts, but save may replace any of the foregoing terms; it may further imply a preserving or maintaining for usefulness or continued existence.
an operation that saved my life
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 ransom
Verb
This cognitive load can lead to hasty judgments that deepen the damage — like paying a ransom.—Raymond Umerley, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025 Some anecdotes spiral forward—a ransom scheme emerges, bit by bit—but others contradict or undercut one another, while still more seem to exist purely as motifs.—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
Noun
Such data, depending on the sensitivity, can be held to ransom against a threat of publication to a leak site or sale to the highest criminal bidder.—Davey Winder, Forbes, 20 Dec. 2024 They were taken by speedboats to the jungles of the southern Philippine province of Sulu, where they were held in harsh conditions before being mostly ransomed off using millions of dollars reportedly provided by then-Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi.—Jim Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2024 See All Example Sentences for ransom
The two wanted the Power of Veto winner to use the ability to keep Panaro, but instead, the winner saved themselves.
—
Dina Kaur,
AZCentral.com,
4 Sep. 2025
For engineers and designers, this framework is like giving a GPS map through the complex terrain of foam design—saving months of trial-and-error testing.
Pic tells the story of a dancer (Kyle Toy) returning home to care for his estranged father (Tzi Ma) with terminal cancer and finding redemption, healing, and purpose by mentoring a diverse community dance class – including a transgender teen struggling to live authentically.
Fame is perhaps this tower, an ultimate entrapment in the self that is also a deliverance from it.
—
Rachel Cusk,
New Yorker,
24 Aug. 2025
After having little luck finding a traditional TV outlet willing to double ESPN/ABC’s current $90 million/year deal, F1 seems to have found deliverance by way of its theatrical partner.
Share