as in laborer
a person who does very hard or dull work
the company had plenty of low-paying positions for people who were content to be peons all their lives
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Recent Examples of peon
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
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
Not afraid but brave, not weak but empowered, not peons but partners.
—Ashley Lee, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The powwow features various contests, including powwow singing, dancing, drumming, and peon games, with a total prize money pool of nearly $125,000 for this year’s participants.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Jan. 2024
The problem is manifested, for instance, in the absurdly long queues for even low-paying government jobs: India Today reported yesterday (June 6) that the government of Uttar Pradesh had received more than 5.5 million applications for the positions of gardeners, watchmen, and office peons.
—Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 7 June 2023
Time ran out far too soon for my old friend Mike Leach, which is cruel and unfair and truly sad, because Mike always seemed to have so much time for everybody else, even a young peon journalist like me in 1999.
—Brent Schrotenboer, USA TODAY, 14 Dec. 2022
Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 8 Oct. 2025
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
Not afraid but brave, not weak but empowered, not peons but partners.
—Ashley Lee, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024
The powwow features various contests, including powwow singing, dancing, drumming, and peon games, with a total prize money pool of nearly $125,000 for this year’s participants.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Jan. 2024
The problem is manifested, for instance, in the absurdly long queues for even low-paying government jobs: India Today reported yesterday (June 6) that the government of Uttar Pradesh had received more than 5.5 million applications for the positions of gardeners, watchmen, and office peons.
—Niharika Sharma, Quartz, 7 June 2023
Time ran out far too soon for my old friend Mike Leach, which is cruel and unfair and truly sad, because Mike always seemed to have so much time for everybody else, even a young peon journalist like me in 1999.
—Brent Schrotenboer, USA TODAY, 14 Dec. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peon
Noun
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While the independent committee supporting Coyne is backed by Local 89, a laborers union, Crosby has been endorsed by the city’s largest labor union — the Municipal Employees Association — and the region’s largest labor organization, the San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Apr. 2026
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Only a few years ago, Black farm workers in the Delta settled lawsuits over claims white laborers from South Africa were paid more for the same work.—
Drew Hawkins,
NPR,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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This cost is nominally shared between employers and employees, but workers bear the real burden through both paycheck deductions and forgone wages.—
Jordan Bruneau,
Boston Herald,
25 Apr. 2026
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Research published last year on Japanese nursing homes found that robot adoption reduced worker quit rates and was associated with better care quality.—
Catherine Thorbecke,
Twin Cities,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Peon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peon. Accessed 29 Apr. 2026.
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