Etymology

captive

cap·tive
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Today it means: One who has been captured or is otherwise confined. Full definition →

Middle English captif ← Latin captīvus ← Proto-Indo-European *kap-
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*kap-“seize, hold”
  2. Latin · derived fromcaptīvus
  3. Middle English · inherited fromcaptif
  4. English todaycaptive

Inherited from Middle English captif; derived from Latin captīvus, probably through a borrowing from a Middle French intermediate. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kap- (“seize, hold”). Doublet of caitiff.

Words from the same roots

Latincaptīvus all →

captivatecaitiff

Proto-Indo-European*kap-<id:seize> all →

cashoccupyreceptivecaptivatebehooveheddle

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.