prisoner
Americannoun
-
a person who is confined in prison or kept in custody, especially as the result of legal process.
-
a person or thing that is deprived of liberty or kept in restraint.
noun
-
a person deprived of liberty and kept in prison or some other form of custody as a punishment for a crime, while awaiting trial, or for some other reason
-
a person confined by any of various restraints
we are all prisoners of time
-
informal to be uncompromising and resolute in one's actions
-
to capture and hold someone as a prisoner, esp as a prisoner of war
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of prisoner
Compare meaning
How does prisoner compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A prisoner is a person being held in prison as a punishment. During wartime a prisoner is someone held captive by the enemy. Alternately, if you’re so attractive you can’t leave the house, you’re a prisoner of your own good looks. Someone who's caught robbing a bank or stealing a car will probably become a prisoner, locked inside a prison for as long as the sentence specifies. If you feel stuck or confined in some way, you may consider yourself a metaphorical prisoner, like an actor who whines that he’s a prisoner of his own success, since he’s not able to go anywhere without cameras flashing and fans screaming.
Vocabulary lists containing prisoner
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.
A treaty was signed, followed by a prisoner exchange, and the U.S. eventually withdrew its navy.
From Salon • Jul. 4, 2026
Yousaf insisted he had an "unavoidable" engagement about a death row prisoner in Pakistan, adding: "I support equal marriage. I supported it then, support it now."
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026
According to Lane and court filings in the Eastern District of New York, for a time El Chapo was able to communicate with a prisoner in a neighboring cell by shouting through the walls.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 25, 2026
In addition to the prison facility swap issue, there’s also the problem that litigation takes time, and there are extra procedural hoops a prisoner has to jump through before bringing a case in federal court.
From Slate • Jun. 23, 2026
Gertie is given an option: She can live with a German sponsor, or she can become a prisoner of war.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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.
