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Definitions

hostage

[hos-tij] / ˈhɒs tɪdʒ /
NOUN
person held captive until captor's demand is met
Synonyms
Antonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

The three, snatched from their home, became symbols of the Gaza hostage crisis.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

Dalit says Shiri Bibas, who was killed along with her two children after being taken hostage, was "like a sister"

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

What to know: The fourth movie in the “Meet the Parents” canon pits Ben Stiller’s Gaylord Focker against his son’s girlfriend, a no-nonsense former FBI hostage negotiator played by Ariana Grande.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

Former British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari has married partner Dami Amit in a ceremony held in Tel Aviv.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

Only Daario had been given to the Yunkai’i, a hostage to ensure no harm came to the Yunkish captains.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Outside Downing Street, a vigil was also held to commemorate British-Israelis killed in the initial attack, later as hostages, or in fighting with Hamas.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

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

Ratcliffe has had some success dealing with the Kremlin, such as in helping secure the release of American hostages in Russia, U.S. officials said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 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

Amongst the stream of warriors were the fathers of many of Jon’s hostages.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

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other hand, John Donvan conceded that there is a limit to living in the past—to hostaging yourself, for instance, to outdated agreements and other generations’ crimes.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

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

From Time Magazine Archive

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

From Time Magazine Archive




Vocabulary lists containing hostage


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