hostage
∞
3.9
- noun
- /ˈhɑːstɪdʒ/
- NSFW
:
rehén
- The negotiators worked tirelessly to secure the release of the hostage held for ransom.
- held hostage
- taken hostage
- hostage taking
They were tasked with hostage rescue and counterterrorism.
- They were tasked with hostage rescue and counterterrorism.
- So that way Trump can claim he got the hostages released.
- He was taken hostage and they found out where he was.
- They were making demands using the hostages.
- So they go in, clear a room, kill the terrorist, get the hostages secured.
- That was the mission, rescue the hostages.
- Yes, this is the universal sign for I'm not a hostage.
- But to trap bank robbers in a bank with hostage is really, really rare.
- Israel doesn't know how to get those hostages out it.
- But a poster of a hostage on a telephone pole hurts them.
- And yet we're how many days into the hostages, American hostages in Gaza.
Examples
-
To pirates, hostages are worth more alive than dead; a dead hostage will not fetch a hefty ransom payment.
Academic text (2011) -
There is no guarantee that all the remaining hostages will be returned safely.
Fiction book (1990) -
The problem is, right after they released one hostage, they took another.
-
Maybe not, because there are hostages in that hotel.
-
So that way Trump can claim he got the hostages released.
-
Some social workers have reported being held hostage by hostile parents on occasion.
Academic text (2011) -
Two French reporters have been hostages in Afghanistan since December 2009.
Academic text (2011) -
Also, if the demands were not met in twenty-four hours, one hostage would be shot.
Fiction book (1990) -
In 2009, for example, they rescued an American captain taken hostage by pirates off the coast of Somalia.
Academic text (2011) -
Much attention has been focused on Gaza, which Hamas holds hostage to its incompetent and brutal policies.
Academic text (2008)
Synonyms
9
8.1
A person who someone takes by force or trick against their will
How Confined
Surface Forms
Etymology
Hostage comes from an old idea of giving a person as a guest or token to show trust between groups, where someone was held as a 'guarantee' that an agreement would be kept. So a hostage today is someone held to force a 'promise' or conditions.