peasant

noun

peas·​ant ˈpe-zᵊnt 

1

: a member of a European class of persons tilling the soil as small landowners or as laborers

This land was farmed by peasants for centuries.

also : a member of a similar class elsewhere

2

: a usually uneducated person of low social status

They treated us like a bunch of peasants.

Examples of peasant in a Sentence

They treated us like a bunch of peasants.

Recent Examples on the Web

Between them sat a peasant with matted hair and a padded coat over his shoulders. —Cassandra Neyenesch, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2026

The split widens when a labor strike becomes an armed revolt, with Jacir gamely tracking the hardening or shifting loyalties of both her peasant and well-to-do characters. —Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 27 Mar. 2026

Everything—from the recognizable designers like Pleats Please and Martin Margiela to the not-recongizable fuzzy sheer knit dress or black peasant tops—comes with a distinct edge. —Clara Giampellegrini, Vogue, 26 Mar. 2026

Müntzer’s teachings helped provoke the widespread uprising of the German peasants in 1525, and have served as a kind of progenitor inspiration for later communist thinkers, from Friedrich Engels to Ernst Bloch. —Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English paissaunt, from Anglo-French paisant, pesaunt, from pais, paiis country, from Late Latin pagensis inhabitant of a district, from Latin pagus district; akin to Latin pangere to fix — more at pact

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for peasant

• pheasant
• pleasant
• present
• omnipresent
• unpleasant

Kids Definition

peasant

noun

peas·​ant ˈpez-ᵊnt 

1

: a European small farmer or farm laborer

2

: a member of a similar agricultural class elsewhere