hostage

It helps you draw boundaries without being held hostage to accusations of selfishness.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

Or that the domestic-romantic subplot dropped into the middle of hostage negotiations doesn’t make for an inelegant construction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

The postboxes for each household bear stickers put there after the attacks three years ago: red indicates those killed, and black those taken hostage.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

The mission involved the office of Adam Boehler, the administration’s special envoy for hostage response, according to the U.S. officials.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

The whole castle, from Lady Stark to the lowliest kitchen scullion, knew he was hostage to his father's good behavior, and treated him accordingly.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin

The last live hostages were freed a year ago as part of a US-brokered ceasefire deal in which Hamas stopped firing into Israel.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

After 56 days, the remaining 44 hostages were released.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

The first phase saw the release of all remaining hostages taken during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

“Once he became Middle East envoy and was given responsibility for the hostages, he became one of the most famous people in Israel overnight,” an Israeli journalist who has covered him told me.

From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026

Neither have they brought away any hobbits as hostages.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

On the other hand, John Donvan conceded that there is a limit to living in the past—to hostaging yourself, for instance, to outdated agreements and other generations’ crimes.

From Slate ● Jan. 11, 2012

In their minds, hostaging means trading -- and trading means talking.

From Time Magazine Archive

Q. Have you expressed that view of hostaging to President Bush?

From Time Magazine Archive