hostage
Use Hostage in a sentence
tɪdʒ noun
1.
a person given or held as security for the fulfillment of certain conditions or terms, promises, etc., by another.
2.
Archaic. a security or pledge.
3.
Obsolete. the condition of a hostage.
verb (used with object)
4.
to give (someone) as a hostage: He was hostaged to the Indians.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
|
Link To hostage
00:10
Hostage
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is lollygag. Does it mean:
| to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly. |
| to spend time idly; loaf. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
hostage (ˈhɒstɪdʒ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a person given to or held by a person, organization, etc, as a security or pledge or for ransom, release, exchange for prisoners, etc |
| 2. | the state of being held as a hostage |
| 3. | any security or pledge |
| 4. | give hostages to fortune to place oneself in a position in which misfortune may strike through the loss of what one values most |
| [C13: from Old French, from hoste guest, | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
hostage
c.1275, from O.Fr. hostage "person given as security or hostage," either from hoste "guest" (see host (1)) via notion of "a lodger held by a landlord as security," or from L.L. obsidanus "condition of being held as security," from obses "hostage," from ob- "before" + base of
sedere "to sit." Modern political/terrorism sense is from 1970s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
Easton
Bible Dictionary
Hostage definition
a person delivered into the hands of another as a security for the performance of some promise, etc. (2 Kings 14:14; 2 Chr. 25:24).
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Cite This Source
Cite This Source
Example sentences
The world has been held hostage to oil and coal producers for far too long.
Below are lists of who was killed, who escaped, and who was held hostage.
They would hold the crew hostage, threaten to sink the vessel, and demand a ransom payment.
When demand exceeds supply, any producer will be able to hold the world hostage.
Matching Quote
Nearby Words
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
