something that restricts freedom as a cage restricts movement
"The bird felt trapped in its small enclosure because it could not fly freely outside."
United States composer of avant-garde music (1912-1992)
"The avant-garde composer John Cage famously used chance operations to create his innovative musical works."
the net that is the goal in ice hockey
"The goalie dove to block the puck before it could hit the cage."
a movable screen placed behind home base to catch balls during batting practice
"The coach adjusted the protective cage behind home plate before the team started their morning batting practice."
An enclosure made of bars, normally to hold animals.
"The lion roared loudly inside its metal cage at the zoo."
In plain English: A cage is an enclosure made of bars that keeps animals inside and stops them from escaping.
"The bird flew freely out of its wooden cage after years of being kept inside."
Usage: Use the noun form when referring to an enclosed structure with bars designed for holding birds or small animals. Avoid confusing it with "gag," which refers specifically to restraining someone's mouth rather than confining them in a space.
To confine in a cage; to put into and keep in a cage.
"The zookeeper carefully placed the injured eagle back into its large aviary cage to protect it from predators."
In plain English: To cage something means to put it inside an enclosure so that nothing can get out.
"The hunters decided to cage the wild bird in its enclosure so they could study it safely."
A surname, from French.
"The famous artist known as Cage was actually a prominent figure in the Fluxus movement under his birth name John Smith."
The word cage comes from the Latin term cavea, which originally referred to a hollow space or enclosure in an amphitheater before traveling through Middle English into modern usage as a prison for animals or birds. It is also considered a doublet of cadge.