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captivity

captivity

102 3.7
A state of being kept somewhere and not allowed to leave
  • noun
  • /kæpˈtɪvɪti/
translation icon : cautiverio
  • There was evidence here of numberless weeks of captivity by night and by day.
  • animals in captivity
  • keep in captivity
  • held in captivity

That and they know now that captivity is wrong.

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Examples

  • After being kidnapped for weeks, the reporter was finally freed from captivity.

  • They spent 444 days in captivity.

  • You can tell those people have been in some kind of captivity for the past year.

  • You know, we did not know while he was in captivity that he was held with that group of people.

  • I spent my whole life in captivity of one sort or another.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • But there is absolutely no reason why there should be more tigers in captivity than in the wild.

  • "When you come from captivity and are thrust into freedom, it's a shock.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Right now, more than 600 foreign nationals remain in captivity in Somalia.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The escaped slaves threw off captivity and created a self-reliant subsistence society using available materials.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The Sultana is a story of endings, the last days of war, the end of slavery, the death of a president, and the end of terrible suffering and captivity.

Synonyms

custody
vscaptivity
  • Specialized
370 3.9

Being held by the police after an arrest

includes that legal holding but also private or nonofficial keeping
prison
vscaptivity
223 5.6

A place or situation that makes someone feel trapped

focuses on the state of being kept and unable to leave rather than place
detention
vscaptivity
155 3.9

A situation in which someone is kept and not allowed to leave, often by police until a decision is made

is wider, including any being kept without permission or freedom
imprisonment
vscaptivity
  • Formal
88 4.0

Being kept in prison as a punishment by law

is the general kept state that can be legal or informal
incarceration
vscaptivity
  • Formal
85 8.0

Being kept in prison as punishment

covers formal confinement but also nonlegal keeping or control situations
confinement
vscaptivity
80 5.9

A state of being kept in a small closed space and unable to move freely

is a broader state that also includes control by another person
slavery
vscaptivity
63 3.5

A situation where one person controls another person and they have no freedom

is the general condition of being kept and not allowed to leave
servitude
vscaptivity
  • NSFW
31 8.9

To be forced to work for and obey another person like a slave

is broader, including being kept without permission even without forced labor
enslavement
vscaptivity
  • NSFW
17 6.3

Being forced to work for someone as their slave

covers ownership and control but also nonownership forms of being kept
bondage
vscaptivity
16 8.6

A state of being controlled and treated like a slave by another person

can mean being kept physically or controlled by another person
internment
vscaptivity
15 8.6

Confinement of people in camps during war, often without a trial

is the general kept state not limited to wartime or special rules
detainment
vscaptivity
7 6.7

Being held by police or officials for a short time

is broader, applying to both short and long term loss of freedom
immurement
vscaptivity
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Shutting someone inside walls so they cannot leave

is more general, covering any kept state not just wall enclosure

Antonyms

1.0

The right to act, speak, or think as you want without being stopped

127 3.9

The act of setting people free from control or unfair treatment

Compounds

A time when the king of Babylon took many Jewish people from Israel to Babylonia after 586 BC

How Confined

enslavement
  • NSFW
17 6.3
imprisonment
  • Formal
88 4.0
captivity
102 3.7
detention
155 3.9
custody
  • Specialized
370 3.9

Surface Forms

captivity singular
captivities plural

Morphology

captivity = captive (transparent) = captive + ity

Formed by adding the noun-forming suffix '-ity' to 'captive', yielding the state or condition of being captive, which is straightforward for learners.

Etymology

Captivity comes from the old Latin word capere, which means 'to take', and you can see the same idea in capture and captive. So captivity is the state of being 'taken' and kept somewhere, not free.