A person delivered into the hands of another as a security for the performance of some promise, etc. (2 Kings 14:14; 2 Chr. 25:24).
·noun A person given as a pledge or security for the performance of the conditions of a treaty or st...
Webster's Dictionary of the English Language
A person given up to an enemy as a pledge or security for the performance of the articles of a treat...
The Sailor's Word-Book