1
a
: taken and held as or as if a prisoner of war
b(1)
: kept within bounds : confined
(2)
: of or relating to captive animals
captive breeding
2
: held under control of another but having the appearance of independence
especially
: owned or controlled by another concern and operated for its needs rather than for an open market
a captive mine
3
: being such involuntarily because of a situation that makes free choice or departure difficult
a captive audience
plural captives
1
: one who has been captured : one taken and held usually in confinement
Something there is in us that finds captivity captivating, particularly when the captives are prisoners of war.—
David Murray
David MurrayHe said that while one of the war-boats was being made ready to take the captives into the lagoon, he and his sister left the camp quietly and got away in their canoe.—Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad2
: one captivated, dominated, or controlled
a captive to love
Unlike so many experts pronouncing on that subject today, though, he has never been a captive of a particular ideology or of a well-heeled interest group.—Uwe E. Reinhardt
Uwe E. ReinhardtCrescent City residents love their culinary customs—too much, according to some critics, who complain that the city's chefs are captives of the past.—Mitch Frank
Mitch FrankExamples of captive in a Sentence
Adjective
The captive soldiers planned their escape.
the captive soldiers were treated humanely by the guards
Noun
the captives in the concentration camp had devised a daring plan of escape
Recent Examples on the Web
Alann B. Steen, Outdoor Life, 10 July 2025
Gina is one of the three women kidnapped and held captive for nearly a decade by Ariel Castro in Cleveland before being rescued in 2013.
—Sarah Dahlberg, NBC news, 9 July 2025
Brendan Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 July 2025
Sherri Papini, the California woman who was convicted in 2022 of faking her kidnapping and lying to the FBI, is again claiming that she was, in fact, kidnapped.
Papini, 43, told authorities in 2016 that two Hispanic women abducted her and held her captive for three weeks.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for captive
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Adjective
This editor’s note accompanied the original story: Held captive in Lebanon, Alann Steen faced the reality of a cold cell and iron chains, the terror of a city exploding with mortar rounds and gunfire.
—Alann B. Steen, Outdoor Life, 10 July 2025
Gina is one of the three women kidnapped and held captive for nearly a decade by Ariel Castro in Cleveland before being rescued in 2013.
—Sarah Dahlberg, NBC news, 9 July 2025
Noun
Thousands are expected to join hostage families at rallies in Israel on Saturday to urge the government to reach a deal to free the captives.
—Brendan Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 July 2025
Sherri Papini, the California woman who was convicted in 2022 of faking her kidnapping and lying to the FBI, is again claiming that she was, in fact, kidnapped.
Papini, 43, told authorities in 2016 that two Hispanic women abducted her and held her captive for three weeks.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for captive
Cite this Entry
“Captive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/captive. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.
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