Dated term for a person captured in war or conflict. Modern Japanese more commonly uses 捕虜 (ほりょ) for 'prisoner of war' and 捕らわれ人 (とらわれびと) or 囚人 (しゅうじん) for 'captive' or 'prisoner'.
Old documents contain descriptions about the treatment of captives.
Compound of 虜 (りょ, 'captive') and 囚 (しゅう, 'prisoner'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the combination directly conveys the meaning of a captured prisoner.