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Synonyms

prisoner of war

American  

noun

  1. a person who is captured and held by an enemy during war, especially a member of the armed forces. POW

prisoner of war British  

noun

  1.  POW.  a person, esp a serviceman, captured by an enemy in time of war

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of prisoner of war

First recorded in 1670–80

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.

Several times I had watched columns of prisoners of war being marched along the streets in Dresden.

From Literature

Now liberated, it is the gateway for freed Ukrainian prisoners of war heading home.

From Barron's

His orders in 1944 were to coordinate the rescue of downed Allied airmen and prisoners of war while establishing radio contact between the resistance and the British.

From The Wall Street Journal

Just as there were prisoners of war, there were also civilians caught behind enemy lines.

From The Wall Street Journal

AFP reporters met prisoners of war from Kenya, Togo, Cameroon and Nigeria during a visit to detention centre in Ukraine late last year.

From Barron's

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.