as in prisoners
one that has been taken and held in confinement
the captives in the concentration camp had devised a daring plan of escape
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Recent Examples of captives
Both sides were initially uncertain about how to handle enemy captives.
—
Drew Gilpin Faust, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
In Empire City, when a hostage crisis erupts inside New York’s landmark Clybourn Building, former Navy SEAL turned firefighter Rhett (Butler), his squad, and his NYPD wife Dani (Atwell) must fight and navigate their way through the building to rescue the captives.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 6 Feb. 2026
Global capability centers and captives, particularly in India and other low-cost locations, have expanded rapidly.
—Peter Bendor-Samuel, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Some captives had come down with smallpox during an epidemic in Lima and carried it home, spreading it to others.
—Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
While all colonial enslavers were anxious about the possibility of poisoning plots in general, other, more local, even personal, concerns existed, such as an enslaver’s fear that one of his captives might try to hasten his death by putting something toxic in his food.
—Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
The captives perch preciously on the head of a slave trader who looks straight ahead, indifferent to the others’ suffering.
—James Meyer, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
Russian soldiers in Ukraine have long been accused by Kyiv and international rights groups of torturing captives.
—CBS News, 8 Dec. 2025
Drew Gilpin Faust, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
In Empire City, when a hostage crisis erupts inside New York’s landmark Clybourn Building, former Navy SEAL turned firefighter Rhett (Butler), his squad, and his NYPD wife Dani (Atwell) must fight and navigate their way through the building to rescue the captives.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 6 Feb. 2026
Global capability centers and captives, particularly in India and other low-cost locations, have expanded rapidly.
—Peter Bendor-Samuel, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Some captives had come down with smallpox during an epidemic in Lima and carried it home, spreading it to others.
—Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
While all colonial enslavers were anxious about the possibility of poisoning plots in general, other, more local, even personal, concerns existed, such as an enslaver’s fear that one of his captives might try to hasten his death by putting something toxic in his food.
—Literary Hub, 5 Jan. 2026
The captives perch preciously on the head of a slave trader who looks straight ahead, indifferent to the others’ suffering.
—James Meyer, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
Russian soldiers in Ukraine have long been accused by Kyiv and international rights groups of torturing captives.
—CBS News, 8 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captives
prisoners
Noun
-
In a statement to CNN, the Dera said Singh was entitled to parole like thousands of other prisoners in the state.—
Rhea Mogul,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The two sides agreed to swap 314 prisoners in the first such exchange in five months, Steve Witkoff said in a post on X on Thursday.—
DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF FROM WIRE REPORTS,
Arkansas Online,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Captives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captives. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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