prisoner
Americannoun
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a person who is confined in prison or kept in custody, especially as the result of legal process.
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a person or thing that is deprived of liberty or kept in restraint.
noun
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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
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a person confined by any of various restraints
we are all prisoners of time
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informal to be uncompromising and resolute in one's actions
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to capture and hold someone as a prisoner, esp as a prisoner of war
Etymology
Origin of prisoner
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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.
Cuba often makes mass prisoner releases in conjunction with high profile events.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
It is the second time this year that Cuba has announced a prisoner release.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
"You rejoice and cry, and you tremble inside from the emotion -- seeing those eyes that are both sad and joyful and filled with tears," she told AFP during a recent prisoner exchange.
From Barron's • Mar. 18, 2026
Washington, once an adversary, now describes a "wonderful" relationship, citing some political prisoner releases and new oil and mining deals.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026
I stared at her, trying to reconcile the fact that Olka, my Olka, was standing right there, but was a prisoner and was holding an Oberführer’s uniform.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
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.
