"hostage to fortune" meaning in English

{
  "etymology_text": "From hostage (“one who is compelled by something, especially something that poses a threat”) + to + fortune (“destiny”).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "hostages to fortune",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "hostages to fortune"
      },
      "expansion": "hostage to fortune (plural hostages to fortune)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "hyphenation": [
    "host‧age"
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "British English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "69 31",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "90 10",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "83 17",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "86 14",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "65 35",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Macedonian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "84 16",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Welsh translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "He was very cautious with his words and gave no hostages to fortune.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Marriage and Single Life. VIII.”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC, page 36:",
          "text": "He that hath VVife and Children, hath giuen Hoſtages to Fortune; For they are Impediments to great Enterpriſes, either of Vertue, or Miſchiefe. Certainly, the beſt vvorkes, and of greateſt Merit for the Publike, haue proceeded from the vnmarried, or Childleſſe Men; vvhich, both in Affection, and Meanes, haue married and endovved the Publike.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "[1732, Thomas Fuller, compiler, Gnomologia: Adagies and Proverbs; Wise Sentences and Witty Sayings, Ancient and Modern, Foreign and British, London: […] B. Barker […]; and A. Bettesworth and C. Hitch, […], →OCLC, paragraph 5742, page 253:",
          "text": "VVife and Children are Hoſtages given to Fortune.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "text": "1982 July 1, Mr. M. O’Leary, Dáil Éireann, volume 337, Houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland https://web.archive.org/web/20121110193054/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0337/D.0337.198207010005.html\nAs I say, there are no answers to date on these serious issues.... It is understandable in human terms that a Government would wish to survive, to do better things perhaps, but so far this House has been left in total ignorance of the policy package to be offered by this Government and their day-to-day operation on which this vote of no confidence is based, on their mishandling of the economy. We can give no hostage to fortune. On their work so far they do not deserve a vote of confidence here today."
        },
        {
          "text": "2001 November 13, John O'Donoghue, Dáil Éireann, volume 543, Houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland https://web.archive.org/web/20121125140855/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0543/D.0543.200111130010.html\nI hope the other report will be completed at a very early date, but to put a timescale on it would be to give hostage to fortune and I am not prepared to do that."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on."
      ],
      "id": "en-hostage_to_fortune-en-noun-90JMOhIC",
      "links": [
        [
          "action",
          "action#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "promise",
          "promise#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "remark",
          "remark#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "consider",
          "consider"
        ],
        [
          "unwise",
          "unwise"
        ],
        [
          "difficult",
          "difficult"
        ],
        [
          "fulfil",
          "fulfil"
        ],
        [
          "cause",
          "cause#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "trouble",
          "trouble#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly British) An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "British"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "98 2",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on",
          "tags": [
            "adjective"
          ],
          "word": "kostautuva"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "98 2",
          "code": "cy",
          "lang": "Welsh",
          "sense": "action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "gwystl ffawd"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "51 49",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Macedonian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "11 89",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1950 July, Winston Churchill, “The Shipping Strangehold”, in The Second World War: Volume IV: The Hinge of Fate, th edition, London, Toronto, Ont.: Cassell & Co., →OCLC, book I (The Onslaught of Japan), page 171:",
          "text": "Once several good outfits are prepared, any one of which can attack a Japanese-held base or island and beat the life out of the garrison, all their islands will become hostages to fortune.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 November 2, Philip Haigh, “Comment: Rail strikes: no end in sight”, in Rail, number 969, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire: Bauer Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 3:",
          "text": "Too many [rail] companies are hostages to fortune by relying on RDW [rest day working] agreements to run their timetable.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck."
      ],
      "id": "en-hostage_to_fortune-en-noun-U-1B-o8-",
      "links": [
        [
          "person",
          "person#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "thing",
          "thing"
        ],
        [
          "fate",
          "fate#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "seen",
          "see#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "dependent",
          "dependent#Adjective"
        ],
        [
          "chance",
          "chance#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "luck",
          "luck#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly US) A person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "_dis1": "22 78",
          "word": "leave nothing to chance"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "22 78",
          "word": "tempt fate"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "note": "kohtalon armoilla (adverb, can be used attributively)",
          "sense": "person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "3 97",
          "code": "mk",
          "lang": "Macedonian",
          "roman": "na mílost na sudbínata",
          "sense": "person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck",
          "word": "на ми́лост на судби́ната"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌhɒstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfɔːt͡ʃuːn/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌhɑstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfoɹt͡ʃun/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/-t͡ʃən/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-give hostage to fortune.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/4c/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɔː(ɹ)t͡ʃuːn"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɔː(ɹ)tʃən"
    }
  ],
  "word": "hostage to fortune"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Rhymes:English/ɔː(ɹ)tʃən",
    "Rhymes:English/ɔː(ɹ)tʃən/5 syllables",
    "Rhymes:English/ɔː(ɹ)t͡ʃuːn",
    "Rhymes:English/ɔː(ɹ)t͡ʃuːn/5 syllables",
    "Terms with Finnish translations",
    "Terms with Macedonian translations",
    "Terms with Welsh translations",
    "en:People"
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From hostage (“one who is compelled by something, especially something that poses a threat”) + to + fortune (“destiny”).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "hostages to fortune",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "hostages to fortune"
      },
      "expansion": "hostage to fortune (plural hostages to fortune)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "hyphenation": [
    "host‧age"
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "leave nothing to chance"
    },
    {
      "word": "tempt fate"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "British English",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "He was very cautious with his words and gave no hostages to fortune.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Marriage and Single Life. VIII.”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC, page 36:",
          "text": "He that hath VVife and Children, hath giuen Hoſtages to Fortune; For they are Impediments to great Enterpriſes, either of Vertue, or Miſchiefe. Certainly, the beſt vvorkes, and of greateſt Merit for the Publike, haue proceeded from the vnmarried, or Childleſſe Men; vvhich, both in Affection, and Meanes, haue married and endovved the Publike.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "[1732, Thomas Fuller, compiler, Gnomologia: Adagies and Proverbs; Wise Sentences and Witty Sayings, Ancient and Modern, Foreign and British, London: […] B. Barker […]; and A. Bettesworth and C. Hitch, […], →OCLC, paragraph 5742, page 253:",
          "text": "VVife and Children are Hoſtages given to Fortune.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "text": "1982 July 1, Mr. M. O’Leary, Dáil Éireann, volume 337, Houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland https://web.archive.org/web/20121110193054/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0337/D.0337.198207010005.html\nAs I say, there are no answers to date on these serious issues.... It is understandable in human terms that a Government would wish to survive, to do better things perhaps, but so far this House has been left in total ignorance of the policy package to be offered by this Government and their day-to-day operation on which this vote of no confidence is based, on their mishandling of the economy. We can give no hostage to fortune. On their work so far they do not deserve a vote of confidence here today."
        },
        {
          "text": "2001 November 13, John O'Donoghue, Dáil Éireann, volume 543, Houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland https://web.archive.org/web/20121125140855/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0543/D.0543.200111130010.html\nI hope the other report will be completed at a very early date, but to put a timescale on it would be to give hostage to fortune and I am not prepared to do that."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "action",
          "action#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "promise",
          "promise#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "remark",
          "remark#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "consider",
          "consider"
        ],
        [
          "unwise",
          "unwise"
        ],
        [
          "difficult",
          "difficult"
        ],
        [
          "fulfil",
          "fulfil"
        ],
        [
          "cause",
          "cause#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "trouble",
          "trouble#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly British) An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "British"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1950 July, Winston Churchill, “The Shipping Strangehold”, in The Second World War: Volume IV: The Hinge of Fate, th edition, London, Toronto, Ont.: Cassell & Co., →OCLC, book I (The Onslaught of Japan), page 171:",
          "text": "Once several good outfits are prepared, any one of which can attack a Japanese-held base or island and beat the life out of the garrison, all their islands will become hostages to fortune.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 November 2, Philip Haigh, “Comment: Rail strikes: no end in sight”, in Rail, number 969, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire: Bauer Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 3:",
          "text": "Too many [rail] companies are hostages to fortune by relying on RDW [rest day working] agreements to run their timetable.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "person",
          "person#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "thing",
          "thing"
        ],
        [
          "fate",
          "fate#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "seen",
          "see#Verb"
        ],
        [
          "dependent",
          "dependent#Adjective"
        ],
        [
          "chance",
          "chance#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "luck",
          "luck#Noun"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly US) A person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌhɒstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfɔːt͡ʃuːn/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌhɑstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfoɹt͡ʃun/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/-t͡ʃən/",
      "tags": [
        "General-American"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-give hostage to fortune.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/4c/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/En-au-give_hostage_to_fortune.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɔː(ɹ)t͡ʃuːn"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɔː(ɹ)tʃən"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on",
      "tags": [
        "adjective"
      ],
      "word": "kostautuva"
    },
    {
      "code": "cy",
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "sense": "action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "gwystl ffawd"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "note": "kohtalon armoilla (adverb, can be used attributively)",
      "sense": "person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck"
    },
    {
      "code": "mk",
      "lang": "Macedonian",
      "roman": "na mílost na sudbínata",
      "sense": "person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck",
      "word": "на ми́лост на судби́ната"
    }
  ],
  "word": "hostage to fortune"
}