slave 1 of 2

1
as in servant
a person who is considered the property of another person many American slaves reached freedom in the North through the network known as the Underground Railroad

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2
as in laborer
a person who does very hard or dull work unappreciated office slaves who perform the necessary but tedious task of filing paperwork

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slave

2 of 2

verb

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 slave
Noun
Once, ships had carried slaves across the Atlantic as part of a triangular trade in captives and commodities that connected the international élite to sadistic violence in Africa and the Americas. Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025 The trailer now shows Ashur, a former slave, struggling to be accepted by high society. Nick Romano, EW.com, 27 July 2025
Verb
Powered by the automatic Rolex cal. 3175, its GMT hand was still slaved to the local hour hand, meaning that a second time zone could only be tracked using the rotating bezel. Oren Hartov, Robb Report, 28 Mar. 2025 For the Outies to live their lives without a second thought to that other person slaving away underground? Ben Travers, IndieWire, 14 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for slave
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slave
Noun
  • 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
  • Frick lived there with his wife, Adelaide Howard Childs Frick, their daughter, and their 27 servants who lived on the third floor.
    Irene S. Levine, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Consequently, June doesn’t feel too bad about stealing the only copy of Athena’s last manuscript, a work of historical fiction involving Chinese laborers during the First World War, and passing it off as her own.
    Hua Hsu, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
  • Meanwhile, industrialists of all kinds were more than happy to pit Black Americans and job-stealing, non-protestant, unionizing commie immigrants against true American skilled laborers.
    Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 15 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • In this way, AI allows PR folks to compare and contrast strategies quickly rather than laboring over a single version.
    Daniel Lotzof, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
  • In the years since Trump pulled off his shocking upset victory over Hillary Clinton, the Democrats have been laboring under a series of myths about themselves and Trump that have compelled them to continue digging their own graves.
    Isaac Schorr, The Washington Examiner, 8 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Similar to his father, Duane II is a bail bondsman who learned the ropes at Chapman's company, Da’Kine Bail Bonds in Hawaii.
    Skyler Caruso, People.com, 21 July 2025
  • That Friday morning, his family, a lawyer and a bail bondsman all gathered in the courthouse for an unsuccessful attempt to have his bond lowered.
    Evan Mealins, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Noun
  • Through Donald Trump's AI Action Plan, the president has similarly emphasized speed, pushing for federal workers to adopt AI as quickly as possible.
    Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 14 Aug. 2025
  • After a mid-July fire broke out at the Franklin Walmart, shutting down the store, workers are thanking first responders with new grills and food.
    Erik S. Hanley, jsonline.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Most entrepreneurs struggle to differentiate themselves and attract their target audience.
    Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2025
  • Outside of Studio Ghibli, most Japanese and anime-influenced films have struggled to gain serious recognition — often because of lingering biases favoring Western animation styles and storytelling conventions.
    Clayton Davis, Variety, 27 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • The brand name also serves as a reminder that our journeys are about striving toward something greater than ourselves, even in the face of challenges, according to Reddick.
    Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 26 Aug. 2025
  • Together, these SDKs signal that Nvidia is striving for Thor to be a cross-domain platform rather than a niche robotics controller.
    Dave Altavilla, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Laws intended to prevent excessive exploitation went mostly unenforced in the rural northwest, allowing the continuation of what was virtually a chattel system in which workers could be bought, sold, and transported freely.
    Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 7 Aug. 2025
  • In many jurisdictions, the appeal of collecting is further enhanced through tax advantage, with sales exempt from capital gains thanks to wine’s classification as a wasting chattel.
    Paul Caputo, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Slave.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slave. Accessed 31 Aug. 2025.

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