captivity
Americannoun
-
captivities
plural
-
the state or period of being held, imprisoned, enslaved, or confined.
- Synonyms:
- incarceration, confinement, imprisonment, subjection, thralldom, slavery, servitude, bondage
- Antonyms:
- freedom
-
(initial capital letter) Babylonian captivity.
noun
-
the condition of being captive; imprisonment
-
the period of imprisonment
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of captivity
1275–1325; Middle English captivite (< Old French ) < Latin captīvitās. See captive, -ity
Explanation
Captivity is the condition of being trapped or confined. Animals that are kept in zoos are in captivity. A prisoner is in captivity, and a kidnapping victim is also in captivity. If you catch a firefly and keep it in a jar, its life will be one of captivity until you let it go. When you're imprisoned or enslaved, you're captive. Both words come from a Latin source, captivus, "caught" or "taken prisoner," from the root capere, "to take, hold, or seize."
Vocabulary lists containing captivity
Charlotte's Web
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"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 1
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"Wild Animals Aren't Pets" and "Let People Own Exotic Animals"
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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:
As Koschei the Deathless stirs from millennia-long captivity, powerful allies close in to reclaim the human lands.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
An American missionary has been released after spending more than nine months in captivity, the international Christian organisation he worked for has said.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
Originating from Greece and other countries, most were dancing bears in captivity, or animals that lived in zoos.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
They said they were overwhelmed with joy that Jin, 57 years old, was free after nearly nine months of captivity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
He had been raised in captivity and released to the wild by Heinz Meng.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
What ensues is a dialogue wherein the djinn explains his various loves and captivities to Alithea, who listens enraptured with her wet hair wrapped in a towel.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 24, 2022
Language fails to describe them on their return from the most cruel of captivities.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 20, No. 118, August, 1867 by Various
Organisation and government protection saved the Ohio Associators from such experiments of colonisation as had frequently led to Indian captivities and abandoned settlements in Tennessee and Kentucky.
From The United States of America, Part 1 by Edwin Erle Sparks
The following pages aim to present a faithful picture of this singular man, in his wanderings, captivities, and escapes.
From The First White Man of the West Life and Exploits of Col. Dan'l. Boone, the First Settler of Kentucky; Interspersed with Incidents in the Early Annals of the Country. by Timothy Flint
They, however, were products of a later age, and had learned many things--good and bad--from surrounding nations or in their captivities, which Moses did not attempt to teach the simple souls that escaped from Egypt.
From Beacon Lights of History, Volume 01 The Old Pagan Civilizations by John Lord
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
