as in oppressed
suffering grave abuse or injustice at the hands of one in authority
a war that was supposed to liberate the downtrodden citizens of that nation
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Recent Examples of downtrodden
Southern Miss’ Charles Huff has had a strong debut season at what was a downtrodden program, going 7-5 at a place that had won a total of four games over the previous two years.
—
Bruce Feldman, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2025
The exuberant Daniels was much more downtrodden, and there seemed to be many thoughts running through his mind.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 28 Nov. 2025
Not in any way, uh, a downtrodden victim.
—Deborah Unger, Scientific American, 5 Nov. 2025
Much of her derision is reserved for Joe (Adam Godley), her downtrodden husband and more pragmatic partner-in-crime.
—Jon O'Brien, IndieWire, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for downtrodden
Bruce Feldman, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2025
The exuberant Daniels was much more downtrodden, and there seemed to be many thoughts running through his mind.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 28 Nov. 2025
Not in any way, uh, a downtrodden victim.
—Deborah Unger, Scientific American, 5 Nov. 2025
Much of her derision is reserved for Joe (Adam Godley), her downtrodden husband and more pragmatic partner-in-crime.
—Jon O'Brien, IndieWire, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for downtrodden
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downtrodden
oppressed
Adjective
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Any oppressed people find outlets in humor.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
14 Jan. 2026
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In 2017, a Radio Free Asia reporter named Shohret Hoshur broke the story that the Chinese government was holding members of the fiercely oppressed Uyghur minority in concentration camps in Xinjiang.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Downtrodden.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downtrodden. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
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