Definition of peonnext
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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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 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peon
Noun
  • Trump also got into trouble for hiring more than two hundred undocumented Polish laborers to handle the demolition.
    Kai Bird, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Both are built by laborers, but opposing a pipeline amounts to stopping the creation of a few thousand jobs.
    David Weigel, semafor.com, 31 July 2026
Noun
  • Search and rescue efforts included nearby residents, emergency services, healthcare workers, security personnel and an expert team from the local disaster prevention office, per the BBC.
    Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Edwin Lopez-Cornejo, a 41-year-old migrant being held at the Delaney Hall detention center, was pronounced dead on Saturday by medical workers at University Hospital in Newark, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement Monday.
    Alex Stambaugh, CNN Money, 4 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Peon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peon. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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