slaves 1 of 2

plural of slave
1
as in bondsmen
a person who is considered the property of another person many American slaves reached freedom in the North through the network known as the Underground Railroad

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2
as in laborers
a person who does very hard or dull work unappreciated office slaves who perform the necessary but tedious task of filing paperwork

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slaves

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of slave

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 slaves
Noun
Paired with the exhibit will be a collection of slavery documents from AARLCC, such as bills of sale for slaves, insurance documents, and emancipation documents, Hobbs said. Raisa Habersham, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2025 About 11 percent of Africans brought to Grenada as slaves between 1669 and 1808 are believed to have been Sierra Leonean, like my parents, whose direct lineage avoided the ships by grace alone. Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 23 Aug. 2025 Some suggested returning slaves to Africa. Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025 Here, too, were the horses, transporting escaping slaves across rivers, pulling them in carriages, carrying them to the next stop on the railroad. Bitter Kalli august 19, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2025 Once, ships had carried slaves across the Atlantic as part of a triangular trade in captives and commodities that connected the international élite to sadistic violence in Africa and the Americas. Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025 Alex is then tasked with keeping her slaves alive, patiently feeding them one spoon at a time. Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025 Up until the 1970’s, Jones said, the whole town would shut down on Wednesdays, which had been the day slaves were bought and sold. Andrea Riquier, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slaves
Noun
  • The grassroots Production Assistants United movement, born partially out of the 2023 strikes, got the backing of a local laborers union in 2024.
    Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
  • Meanwhile, blue-collar or trade laborers are expected to remain essential.
    Eyal Lifshitz, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • News of Coward’s impending attendance, spread by the area’s servants, results in a triumphant event in which Coward not only sings a song but also, upon hearing of Mary’s divorce, hatches the plot for Private Lives.
    Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2025
  • The first such center was established in Taylor, Michigan, with others eventually popping up in Florida, Texas and Missouri — all of them making money off the backs of servants who allegedly were forced to work for free.
    Tresa Baldas, Freep.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • The district says the money will help pay for a laundry list of programs, such as all-day kindergarten at all grade schools; the universal free breakfast program; pre-K centers; expanded career-technical education programs; and additional social workers, counselors and behavior specialists.
    Kevin Richert, Idaho Statesman, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Rather than rendering aid or notifying emergency personnel, Sellers told co-workers that a ‘woman fell in the parking lot’ and needed help.
    Mark Price, Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • But if a team struggles to run the ball or pass the ball, the head coach is left to praise… the kicking game.
    Howard Megdal, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Ansari’s main idea was to show the gig economy, and those stuck on the lower end of the economic scale’s struggles just to say alive.
    Pete Hammond, Deadline, 7 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Plus, bail bondsmen are the ultimate local rent seekers.
    Dan Gooding Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Now retired, Andra loved her job working for the federal government and strives to make a difference in the world around her.
    Liza Esquibias, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2025
  • The brand strives to offer a premium denim look at prices more accessible than other premium denim brands.
    David Moin, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Eliécer Camacho Jiménez, former general of the Colombian National Police (the organization that works closely with the DEA on combatting drug trafficking in Colombia), told me there are growing divisions within Maduro's circles.
    Kristina Foltz, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Sep. 2025
  • That people might be falling for the Minneapolis shooter’s scribblings and raging at each other over potential motivations is likely thrilling to potential copycat killers—proof that the troll still works.
    Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Slaves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slaves. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.

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