as in enslaved
required by a contract to work for a certain period of time
immigrants who came to the U.S. as indentured servants 200 years ago
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of indentured
Rue works as an indentured servant for drug dealer Laurie (Martha Kelly) while Cassie and Nate navigate married life.
—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
10 May 2026
She was placed as an indentured servant with the Toppan family of Lowell and took their surname, per the Lowell Historical Society and the West End Museum.
—
Christina Coulter,
People.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Under Trump, Congress has behaved like an indentured servant rather than an independent agent.
—
Steve Chapman,
Chicago Tribune,
2 July 2025
Among her ancestors: John Howland, who arrived as an indentured servant; Elizabeth Tilley, who was a passenger along with her parents and married Howland three years after arriving; and Richard Warren, who helped explore Cape Cod to find areas to settle.
—
Lois K. Solomon,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Nov. 2024
The young man probably arrived from England in the 1630s as a cabin boy or an indentured servant.
—
Meilan Solly,
Smithsonian Magazine,
26 Dec. 2023
But most indentured people really weren’t given a choice.
—
Logan Jaffe,
ProPublica,
19 June 2020
Both the levelers among the founders and their critics agreed on where the wealth necessary for the new nation would come from: the expropriation of Native Americans, as well as from slave and indentured labor.
—
Danielle Allen,
Foreign Affairs,
14 Dec. 2015
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
10 May 2026
She was placed as an indentured servant with the Toppan family of Lowell and took their surname, per the Lowell Historical Society and the West End Museum.
—
Christina Coulter,
People.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Under Trump, Congress has behaved like an indentured servant rather than an independent agent.
—
Steve Chapman,
Chicago Tribune,
2 July 2025
Among her ancestors: John Howland, who arrived as an indentured servant; Elizabeth Tilley, who was a passenger along with her parents and married Howland three years after arriving; and Richard Warren, who helped explore Cape Cod to find areas to settle.
—
Lois K. Solomon,
Sun Sentinel,
27 Nov. 2024
The young man probably arrived from England in the 1630s as a cabin boy or an indentured servant.
—
Meilan Solly,
Smithsonian Magazine,
26 Dec. 2023
But most indentured people really weren’t given a choice.
—
Logan Jaffe,
ProPublica,
19 June 2020
Both the levelers among the founders and their critics agreed on where the wealth necessary for the new nation would come from: the expropriation of Native Americans, as well as from slave and indentured labor.
—
Danielle Allen,
Foreign Affairs,
14 Dec. 2015
Recent Examples of Synonyms for indentured
Adjective
-
In 1643, Connecticut signed one of the first laws requiring local officials to assist in capturing enslaved runaways.
-
Elizabeth Freeman, one of Massachusetts’s 5,000 enslaved people, was among those who decided to take her chance at freedom.
Adjective
-
On many mornings, shackled migrants plead guilty to military trespass charges rather than remain jailed awaiting trial.
Adjective
-
Years later, when tragedy strikes again and a mysterious inheritance surfaces, Ruth is forced to confront unsettling truths about the women who raised her and decide whether to redefine her future or remain bound to the past.
-
The bound paper booklets in which students hand-write their responses to test questions have surged in popularity during the AI explosion.
Adjective
-
Fujimori, the daughter of a disgraced former president, and Sánchez, an ally of an imprisoned ex-president, beat 33 other candidates in the initial vote in April, but neither earned even 20% of support.
-
Fujimori, daughter of a disgraced former president, and Sánchez, an ally of an imprisoned ex-president, were on the runoff’s ballot after beating 33 other candidates in the vote in April, but neither earned even 20% of support.
Adjective
-
On Sunday, deputies got a 911 call from a teenage girl saying she was being held captive.
-
In 1839, 53 captive Mende people taken from Sierra Leone revolted aboard the Spanish ship La Amistad, diverting the ship from its original destination of Cuba toward the Northeast.
Cite this Entry
“Indentured.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/indentured. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
