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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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 downtrodden Through little eyebrow raises, adjustments to the set of his mouth, and his slumped posture on Smiley’s couch, Hardy communicates how downtrodden Tarr feels. Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 25 Apr. 2025 As for the idea mentioned by Schefter that claims teams are 'already tanking' for the rising sophomore, there are a few downtrodden franchises that would fit that mold. David Faris, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Apr. 2025 Mets fans, seeking to give their downtrodden $765 million slugger an emotional lift, gave him a rousing standing ovation. Sam Settleman, New York Times, 3 May 2025 The new celebrity owners clearly bought into being ideal stewards of a downtrodden club, and the city of just under 45,000 embraced the unorthodox, reality-show approach to marketing the team. Ian Nicholas Quillen, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for downtrodden
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downtrodden
oppressed
Adjective
  • Kid is a member of an oppressed race who was driven to terrorism by the acts of the corporation that destroyed his home planet and vilified his race.
    Ryan Woodrow, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 May 2025
  • Atwood’s novel allows readers to map June’s hardship onto virtually any era in which women feel oppressed (which, horrifically, is every era in American history).
    Ben Travers, IndieWire, 8 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Downtrodden.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downtrodden. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.

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