prisoner's base

American  

noun

1. any of various children's games in which each of two teams has a home base where members of the opposing team are kept prisoner after being tagged or caught and from which they can be freed only in specified ways.

---

prisoner's base British  

noun

1. a children's game involving two teams, members of which chase and capture each other to increase the number of children in their own base

---

Etymology

Origin of prisoner's base

1590–1600; compare late Middle English bace prisoner's base, perhaps from the phrase bringen bas to lay low, cause to surrender; later taken as an assimilated form of bars, plural of bar ¹, or as base ¹ (though the sense “goal or starting point” originated with this game)

Example Sentences

No more worrying about Ian Forbes or the king of England or prisoner’s base.

From "Homesick" by Jean Fritz

Every day we played a game called prisoner's base, which was all running and shouting and shoving and catching.

From "Homesick" by Jean Fritz

The boys, too, celebrate the day with games, bat and ball, prisoner's base, and others "of a very European character."

From The Religions of India Handbooks on the History of Religions, Volume 1, Edited by Morris Jastrow by Hopkins, Edward Washburn

"Emmie isn't the captain at prisoner's base," the accused would say, in self-defence, "and she doesn't walk miles and miles with father on Sunday afternoons."

From The Open Question a tale of two temperaments by Robins, Elizabeth

They probably played tag, ball, prisoner's base, asked riddles and blew soap-bubbles, as these simple amusements dated from medieval days.

From The Stronghold A Story of Historic Northern Neck of Virginia and Its People by Haynie, Miriam