Dictionary Definition

prisoner n : a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war [syn: captive]

User Contributed Dictionary

person incarcerated in a prison

figurative: any person held against his or her will

Prisoner may refer to one of the following:

A person incarcerated in a prison or jail or similar facility
Prisoner of war, a soldier in wartime, held as by an enemy
Political prisoner, someone held in prison for their ideology
A person forcibly detained against his will, such as a victim of kidnapping; such prisoners may be held Hostage, or held to ransom, but not necessarily in a prison or similar facility

In television:

The Prisoner, a 1967 British fantasy-drama television series
Prisoner, an Australian soap opera (known as Prisoner Cell Block H in the UK and US)
The Prisoner (computer game), a 1980 adventure game for the Apple II personal computer
"Prisoners" (Stargate SG-1), an episode of Stargate SG-1

In music:

POW, accused, cageling, captive, chain gang, con, convict, correspondent, defendant, detainee, detenu, ex-convict, gaolbird, internee, jailbird, libelee, lifer, parolee, political prisoner, prisoner of war, respondent, stir bird, suspect, ticket-of-leave man, ticket-of-leaver, trusty, two-time loser