as in clown
a person of low social status
Those snobs treat anyone who lives on the "wrong" side of town like an insignificant peasant.
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Recent Examples of peasant
Because of France’s social structure, the bulk of the financial strain fell to its peasants, while the top 1% was virtually exempt from paying taxes.
—
Serena Turner, Vanity Fair, 29 Dec. 2025
One of the most stunning exhibitions of the year put the spotlight on Our Lady of Guadalupe, which has a long history dating back to 1531, tied to four apparitions of the Virgin Mary to a peasant in Mexico.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2025
In Bulgaria, village music was typically sung by peasants while tending to agriculture and husbandry; at weddings; and to express national pride.
—Emma Madden, Pitchfork, 21 Dec. 2025
By today’s standards, a peasant’s house was small – in England, the average was around 700 square feet (65 square meters).
—Bobbi Sutherland, The Conversation, 19 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for peasant
Serena Turner, Vanity Fair, 29 Dec. 2025
One of the most stunning exhibitions of the year put the spotlight on Our Lady of Guadalupe, which has a long history dating back to 1531, tied to four apparitions of the Virgin Mary to a peasant in Mexico.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2025
In Bulgaria, village music was typically sung by peasants while tending to agriculture and husbandry; at weddings; and to express national pride.
—Emma Madden, Pitchfork, 21 Dec. 2025
By today’s standards, a peasant’s house was small – in England, the average was around 700 square feet (65 square meters).
—Bobbi Sutherland, The Conversation, 19 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for peasant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peasant
Noun
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The results will show young women who look an awful lot like circus clowns, with faces hidden under layers of masks, gels, serums, and even face tape.—
Jana Pollack,
Parents,
31 Jan. 2026
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What awaits you is an emotional journey through family, death, grief, memory, hope, and tears that also features clowns – yes, clowns!—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Marlowe, the son of a poor Canterbury cobbler, and Shakespeare, the son of a Stratford glover and alderman, were both unlikely artistic geniuses, provincials in a nation in which social class was rigidly fixed.—
Heller McAlpin,
Christian Science Monitor,
10 Sep. 2025
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Sanders is a Catholic priest and former Augustinian provincial in California and lives in the Augustinian community in North Park.—
Gary Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
14 May 2025
Noun
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Soon there was an altercation at the front desk, when a Haitian upbraided the American peons about not getting her free stuff fast enough.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
8 Oct. 2025
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Not only does the peon and con man Tom end up refashioning himself as the rich and carefree Dickie, but Highsmith’s novel itself was a retelling of Henry James’s The Ambassadors.—
Hillary Kelly,
The Atlantic,
19 Apr. 2024
Noun
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Carrie raves to Seema about her creative connection with Duncan, and during another writing session, Duncan helps Carrie with her faulty printer and gawks at her closet full of designer dresses and shoes.—
Dave Nemetz,
TVLine,
31 July 2025
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Here, the blurring is visual: Sometimes Leonard floats into the past looking like Gere, who wears the character without a shred of self-protection as the lens gawks at his raw skin.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
From January 17 to 19, the two ski mountaineers, along with climber Brette Harrington, climbed the 11,234-foot Deltaform Mountain in eastern British Columbia.—
Frederick Dreier,
Outside,
23 Jan. 2026
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Ski patrol, mountaineers and even the Lutsen Fire Department jumped into action and started a rope EVAC.—
Tony Peterson,
CBS News,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Neither modish nor cookie-cutter rustic in aesthetic, the hotel, tucked away off the main street in the village of Malfa, feels like a genuine home, where old framed maps, ceramics, pots, and paintings, along with other antiques, have been collected over the years.—
Rosalyn Wikeley,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 Jan. 2026
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Don’t sleep on its heirloom section, either—a collection of rustic, foraged objects that would look just right on a shelf by the door in your unapologetically urban apartment.—
Air Mail,
Air Mail,
10 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Peasant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peasant. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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