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:
A new study suggests that saltwater crocodiles born or raised in captivity may not try to return to their breeding centers once they are released into the wild.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
"Krista and the rest of Kevin's family are profoundly grateful for the prayers offered on their behalf by people around the world throughout his captivity," it said.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 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
Many who survived the Oryoku Maru would later say their ordeal on board the ship—one of more than 100 Japanese prisoner transports that would become known as “hellships”—was the worst of their captivity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Massasoit had kept Tisquantum in a kind of captivity since his arrival, monitoring his actions closely.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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
The captivities of Israel and Judah were other illustrations of the same thing.
From Expositions of Holy Scripture : St. Matthew Chaps. IX to XXVIII by Alexander Maclaren
The church was built to guard the emblems of the two captivities.
From The Formation of Christendom, Volume VI The Holy See and the Wandering of the Nations, from St. Leo I to St. Gregory I by T. W. (Thomas William) Allies
The palisaded meeting-house square, the fortified isolated garrison houses, the massacres and captivities are familiar features of New England's history.
From The Frontier in American History by Frederick Jackson Turner
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.
