1
a
: a person held by one party in a conflict as a pledge pending the fulfillment of an agreement
b
: a person taken by force to secure the taker's demands
2
: one that is involuntarily controlled by an outside influence
Examples of hostage in a Sentence
The terrorists demanded a plane and a pilot in exchange for the hostages.
The hostage crisis is now entering its second week.
The passengers were taken hostage.
They were held hostage for several days.
Recent Examples on the Web
Former hostage negotiator Roger Carstens told us that Maduro held and tortured Americans who had been arrested for minor offenses.
—
Scott Pelley, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
Gonen, now 25, was kidnapped at age 23 from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and released as part of the January 2025 hostage deal.
—Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 4 Jan. 2026
Or a helpful neighbor may gradually take over control, essentially hold the senior hostage and isolate him from his relatives and friends.
—Virginia Hammerle, Dallas Morning News, 4 Jan. 2026
Delta Force is an elite special operations group of soldiers trained in secret counterterrorism operations and hostage rescues.
—Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 3 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hostage
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Scott Pelley, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
Gonen, now 25, was kidnapped at age 23 from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and released as part of the January 2025 hostage deal.
—Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 4 Jan. 2026
Or a helpful neighbor may gradually take over control, essentially hold the senior hostage and isolate him from his relatives and friends.
—Virginia Hammerle, Dallas Morning News, 4 Jan. 2026
Delta Force is an elite special operations group of soldiers trained in secret counterterrorism operations and hostage rescues.
—Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 3 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hostage
Cite this Entry
“Hostage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hostage. Accessed 6 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hostage
noun
hos·tage
ˈhäs-tij 
: a person held captive as a pledge that promises will be kept or terms met by another
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