trapped
Americanadjective
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caught in or as if in a trap or by a ruse, trick, or stratagem.
Relocate any trapped rabbit at least five miles from the capture site.
Early in the visit I became the trapped witness to a nasty argument between my host and his wife, which they expected me to arbitrate.
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(of air, water, etc.) held or contained in an enclosed space or in another substance.
Make sure the clay is pressed flat, with no trapped air bubbles.
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accidentally stuck or jammed in a narrow place from which release is difficult.
This excellent telescopic ladder has finger guards—no more trapped fingers when letting it down!
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set with traps.
We followed the track carefully through heavily trapped bush to the meeting place.
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(of a drain, pipe, or the like) furnished with a device for stopping undesirable substances from flowing through.
The pipes discharge wastewater into a sewer, usually through a trapped drain.
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Baseball. (of a ball) caught as it hits the ground.
Challenges to the umpire included a trapped ball in the outfield that nobody else thought was actually caught.
verb
Etymology
Origin of trapped
First recorded in 1425–75; trap 1 ( def. ) + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; trap 1 ( def. ) + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
Vocabulary lists containing trapped
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
We remain trapped in Wrestling World, and we all know who holds the championship belt.
From Slate • Jun. 11, 2026
She appears trapped in a yellow tunnel, which is actually a slide at Chick-fil-A.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026
In reality, just a few inches of the sticky stuff was enough to snare a heavy animal in place until it either died of exposure or fell prey to predators, who then became trapped themselves.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2026
"The travellers found themselves trapped in the heart of a hostile environment where extreme temperatures and lack of supply points make survival extremely difficult," said a statement from the Agadez governor.
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026
I pictured my mother, holding me in her arms, dying, ready to give me a name, a name that would overpower all the magic that had trapped her.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
