1
as in servants
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in labors
to devote serious and sustained effort
slaving over a hot stove
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of slaves
USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Launched in 2020 after the 400th anniversary of the first African slaves arriving in Jamestown, Virginia, the decade-long initiative encourages people of African descent to visit or repatriate and reconnect with their heritage and culture.
—Melanie Van Zyl, Travel + Leisure, 6 Mar. 2026
Cash in hand, the sugarcane planters of Mauritius replaced their slaves with contract labor from the Indian subcontinent.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
The Dred Scott decision was later overruled by the ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments after the Civil War, which outlawed slavery, gave former slaves citizenship, and gave former slaves voting rights, respectively.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, the many Afro Panamanians already living in the country, whose descendants had been trafficked as slaves, spoke Spanish.
—Brendan Frizzell, The Conversation, 27 Feb. 2026
John Shippen was a child of former slaves who found his way onto a golf course and made history there.
—Otis Livingston, CBS News, 27 Feb. 2026
The researchers at Native Bound Unbound have uncovered instances of African and Indigenous slaves in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries working side by side in Latin American mines.
—Geraldo Cadava, New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2026
When the Civil War ended in 1865, being a cowboy was one of the only jobs offered to freed slaves who didn't want to live in the cities.
—Amanda Luberto, AZCentral.com, 23 Feb. 2026
Noun
After the slaves were freed and cotton was no longer king, a different sort of richness was pulled from the ground in Walker County.
—USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Launched in 2020 after the 400th anniversary of the first African slaves arriving in Jamestown, Virginia, the decade-long initiative encourages people of African descent to visit or repatriate and reconnect with their heritage and culture.
—Melanie Van Zyl, Travel + Leisure, 6 Mar. 2026
Cash in hand, the sugarcane planters of Mauritius replaced their slaves with contract labor from the Indian subcontinent.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
The Dred Scott decision was later overruled by the ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments after the Civil War, which outlawed slavery, gave former slaves citizenship, and gave former slaves voting rights, respectively.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, the many Afro Panamanians already living in the country, whose descendants had been trafficked as slaves, spoke Spanish.
—Brendan Frizzell, The Conversation, 27 Feb. 2026
John Shippen was a child of former slaves who found his way onto a golf course and made history there.
—Otis Livingston, CBS News, 27 Feb. 2026
The researchers at Native Bound Unbound have uncovered instances of African and Indigenous slaves in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries working side by side in Latin American mines.
—Geraldo Cadava, New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2026
When the Civil War ended in 1865, being a cowboy was one of the only jobs offered to freed slaves who didn't want to live in the cities.
—Amanda Luberto, AZCentral.com, 23 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slaves
Noun
-
Artificial men become soldiers and servants (a dead detective rebuilt as RoboCop; Bucky Barnes brainwashed to become the Winter Soldier; Anakin Skywalker resurrected as Darth Vader).—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Sadly, Bridgerton has provided no evidence that Alfie has yet capitalized on his many obvious talents, and apparently the servants can barely spend 45 minutes in the market without their employers jumping down their throats.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No workers for mundane tasks Diez revealed that manufacturers worldwide are struggling to find laborers for highly repetitive physical tasks.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Mar. 2026
-
The voices captured on that wall belong not to emperors or senators, but to lovers, laborers, sports fans, and artists who left their marks in a corridor between two theaters, never imagining those marks would still be read 2,000 years later.—
Ryan Brennan,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Every man and woman who labors in the construction industry deserves that.—
Tim Dunn,
Boston Herald,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Plus, bail bondsmen are the ultimate local rent seekers.—
Dan Gooding
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Steps from the Capitol's West Front and where the worst of the fighting occurred, workers quietly have installed a plaque honoring the officers, three years after it was required by law to be erected.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Mar. 2026
-
In Kharkiv, in Ukraine's northeast, emergency workers were combing the rubble, looking for survivors.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But rival Target reported earlier this week another quarterly decline in profits and sales during the critical holiday period as the discounter struggles with its own merchandising missteps and confronts a consumer who is focusing more on essentials.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
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In December, Wisconsin Watch reported on an Appleton technical charter school that struggles to manage high program costs and secure donations to stay afloat.—
Miranda Dunlap,
jsonline.com,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Sweeney plays Undine Spragg, a fiercely ambitious woman from the Midwest who strives for the social heights of turn-of-the-century New York.—
Justin Kroll,
Deadline,
11 Mar. 2026
-
As the agency continues to grow, strengthening its infrastructure, TSD strives to preserve the intimacy that first defined those early kitchen-table sessions.—
Contributor,
USA Today,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Keep it straightforward, and repeat what works today.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Anyone who has seen the way the space works today can recognize that there are a lot of families who find this very, very difficult right now.—
Anna Moeslein,
Glamour,
9 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Slaves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slaves. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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