as in indentured
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as in defeated
to take control of and assert authority over
—usually used as (be) enslaved
Her ancestors were enslaved during the war.
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Recent Examples of enslaved
Stephen Mihm, Mercury News, 5 Feb. 2026
The codes were so secretive that not all enslaved people knew about them.
—Carolyn Stein, Chicago Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
Black people, kidnapped and enslaved, had none, and as freedom was gained, new laws were written to hold them in place.
—Robert Lloyd, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for enslaved
Adjective
In 1854, an opportunity presented itself when Anthony Burns, an enslaved man, fled from Virginia and settled in Boston — the center of abolitionist sentiment in the US and a kind of sanctuary city for runaways.
—Stephen Mihm, Mercury News, 5 Feb. 2026
The codes were so secretive that not all enslaved people knew about them.
—Carolyn Stein, Chicago Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Verb
Even fabled Athens was only briefly a democracy, and that even then every third person was enslaved.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
Black people, kidnapped and enslaved, had none, and as freedom was gained, new laws were written to hold them in place.
—Robert Lloyd, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for enslaved
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enslaved
Adjective
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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
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Under Trump, Congress has behaved like an indentured servant rather than an independent agent.—
Steve Chapman,
Chicago Tribune,
2 July 2025
Verb
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Tyler, competing in the 138-pound bracket, defeated Melissa’s Jaxon Johnson in the title match via 6-1 decision.—
Charles Baggarly,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
16 Feb. 2026
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Eduards Tralmaks and Renars Krastenbergs scored just more than three minutes apart, and Latvia defeated Germany 4-3.—
Stephen Whyno,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The most prevalent problem the officer saw among imprisoned immigrants was psychological.—
Amy Maxmen,
Miami Herald,
11 Feb. 2026
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Habeas petitions are, as a rule, the last option for an imprisoned person to void their convictions.—
Dan Mangan,
CNBC,
17 Dec. 2025
Verb
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As Russia reduced flows, prices spiked, pushing up energy bills and helping fuel a cost of living crisis.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
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Ultimately, the report states, about 1% of the district’s more than 83,000 employees are likely to lose a job or have their pay reduced.—
Howard Blume,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The bound, heavy scriptures were placed on the cot and carried off in a procession to its sleeping quarters.—
Norma Meyer,
Oc Register,
4 Feb. 2026
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The teenage phenom who seemed bound to start at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar instead fell down the depth chart.—
Paul Tenorio,
New York Times,
2 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The grief and guilt annihilated our worth.—
Jennifer W. Tsai,
STAT,
18 Jan. 2026
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Her anger stems from a catastrophic event that annihilated the clan's homeland.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Americans have been skeptical of brown-skinned people since the days of the Alamo, always fearful Latinos are one step away from insurrection and thus must always be subjugated.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
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It’s subjugated to a larger sense of what’s called the universal destination of all goods.—
Jay Caspian Kang,
New Yorker,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The new tubes solve that problem with an internal divider at the middle of the tube that helps trap the air in a confined chamber.—
Deni Ellis Béchard,
Scientific American,
3 Feb. 2026
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New York State now has six months to develop a plan to comply with a recent class action settlement addressing the lack of adequate mental health services for confined youth.—
Gladys Carrión,
New York Daily News,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Enslaved.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enslaved. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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