hostage

«hostage» in Mova's judaism dictionary: a person who is held prisoner by someone who will not let… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 2 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (a hostage, hostages)

meaning for a pupil

1) A hostage is a person who is held prisoner by someone who will not let them go until they get what they want. tree →

2) To take someone hostage, or hold someone hostage, is to capture and keep them like this. tree →

sense in the lessons

In history and news, hostages are taken in wars, by kidnappers or by terrorists; it is a crime under the law of every country, and governments work hard to free them. News reports of conflicts say who is being held and what each side says. In stories, a hostage raises the stakes for the hero. Figuratively, «held hostage» can mean controlled by something: «held hostage by the weather». Phrases: «take hostage», «hold hostage», «release the hostages», «hostage crisis».

examples

• And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria. (Prophets 2KI.14.14, JPS 1917) tree →
• And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of God with Obed-edom, and the treasures of the king's house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria. (Writings 2CH.25.24, JPS 1917) tree →
• The robbers took two people hostage in the bank. tree →
• The hostages were released after many days. tree →
• Families waited for news of the hostages. tree →
• In the film, the hero rescued the hostage from the castle. tree →
• Taking hostages is a serious crime. tree →
• (figurative) Our picnic was held hostage by the rain. tree →
• They even owed something to their landlord, who kept them as hostages till they could pay their debts. tree →

note

Plural: «hostages». Pattern: «take/hold someone hostage» (no «as»). In news, reports often say how many hostages were taken and who says what; stick to what is reported. Not the same as a prisoner of war, who is a soldier captured in a war.

In the corpora

• Israel then bombed Gaza and sent in soldiers to fight Hamas and bring the hostages home.
• Like a friend who is sad for two cousins at once, your heart can hold the hostages and the children of Gaza together.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «hostage» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.