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View synonyms for

prisoner

[ priz-uh-ner, priz-ner ]

noun

  1. a person who is confined in prison or kept in custody, especially as the result of legal process.
  2. a person or thing that is deprived of liberty or kept in restraint.


prisoner

/ ˈɪəə /

noun

  1. 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
  2. a person confined by any of various restraints

    we are all prisoners of time

  3. take no prisoners informal.
    to be uncompromising and resolute in one's actions
  4. take someone prisoner
    to capture and hold someone as a prisoner, esp as a prisoner 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
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Word History and Origins

Origin of prisoner1

1300–50; Middle English < Anglo-French. See prison, -er 2
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

It is tasked with a broad range of actions — hunting fugitives, transporting federal prisoners and managing goods seized from criminals.

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State prisoners often end up serving less time because of credit for rehabilitative programs and good behavior, but the suggestion that Ortega-Anguiano could walk free riled Trump administration officials.

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A private prison in West Lothian is the first to face prosecution over the death of a prisoner, 12 days after he contracted Covid.

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The report also described the adjudication system as being in "disarray", which would send a message of "if you behave badly here there isn't going to be a consequence", leading to prisoners feeling unsafe.

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At the time of the attack Abedi was held in a separation wing used to house the most dangerous and extremist prisoners.

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prison campprisoner of war