Meaning of hostageship | Babel Free

Definitions

A condition of being held as surety for a pledge, as to appear before a magistrate for trial after release from gaol.

countable, historical, uncountable

Equivalents

Examples

“English, Norman and French tradition seem all to point to an ancient and extremely rigorous form of suretyship or hostageship which would have rendered the surety liable to suffer the punishment that was hanging over the head of the released prisoner.”

CEFR level