as in laborer
a person who does very hard or dull work
the company had plenty of low-paying positions for people who were content to be peons all their lives
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of peon
Not only does the peon and con man Tom end up refashioning himself as the rich and carefree Dickie, but Highsmith’s novel itself was a retelling of Henry James’s The Ambassadors.
—
Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 19 Apr. 2024
Not afraid but brave, not weak but empowered, not peons but partners.
—Ashley Lee, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The powwow features various contests, including powwow singing, dancing, drumming, and peon games, with a total prize money pool of nearly $125,000 for this year’s participants.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Jan. 2024
The problem is manifested, for instance, in the absurdly long queues for even low-paying government jobs: India Today reported yesterday (June 6) that the government of Uttar Pradesh had received more than 5.5 million applications for the positions of gardeners, watchmen, and office peons.
—Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 7 June 2023
Time ran out far too soon for my old friend Mike Leach, which is cruel and unfair and truly sad, because Mike always seemed to have so much time for everybody else, even a young peon journalist like me in 1999.
—Brent Schrotenboer, USA TODAY, 14 Dec. 2022
Kids and adults played peon or hand games traditional to the region.
—Debra Utacia Krol, The Arizona Republic, 28 Aug. 2022
Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 19 Apr. 2024
Not afraid but brave, not weak but empowered, not peons but partners.
—Ashley Lee, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The powwow features various contests, including powwow singing, dancing, drumming, and peon games, with a total prize money pool of nearly $125,000 for this year’s participants.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Jan. 2024
The problem is manifested, for instance, in the absurdly long queues for even low-paying government jobs: India Today reported yesterday (June 6) that the government of Uttar Pradesh had received more than 5.5 million applications for the positions of gardeners, watchmen, and office peons.
—Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 7 June 2023
Time ran out far too soon for my old friend Mike Leach, which is cruel and unfair and truly sad, because Mike always seemed to have so much time for everybody else, even a young peon journalist like me in 1999.
—Brent Schrotenboer, USA TODAY, 14 Dec. 2022
Kids and adults played peon or hand games traditional to the region.
—Debra Utacia Krol, The Arizona Republic, 28 Aug. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peon
Noun
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This structure, along with Structure II (likely a checkpoint or guard post), was part of the police and guard infrastructure surrounding the laborers’ settlements.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Oct. 2025
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In the manufacturing, construction and electrical trades, there's a dearth of talent as skilled laborers age out of the workforce without being replaced by younger workers.—
Kate Rogers,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Authorities said the building’s foundation pillars gave way while construction workers were laying down concrete.—
Britt Clennett,
ABC News,
30 Sep. 2025
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Union workers at the JFK location in North Little Rock participated in a nationwide strike in December 2024.—
Sydney Sasser,
Arkansas Online,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Peon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peon. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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