1
as in servant
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in laborer
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 to labor
to devote serious and sustained effort
slaving over a hot stove
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of slave
Cheyanne M. Daniels, The Hill, 5 May 2025
Earlier this year, Sheinbaum defended the arrival of Cuban doctors in Mexico, despite critics arguing that they are treated as virtual slaves under bilateral government agreements.
—Andres Oppenheimer, Miami Herald, 7 May 2025
Kaila Philo, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Jan. 2025
The scholars borrow from critical theory—including a Marxist focus on the alienation of labor and postmodern pessimism—with some going so far as to compare the resorts to slave plantations.
—Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for slave
Noun
Some slaves were severely punished for practicing their beliefs, while slaveowners would often refer to passages from the Bible in their justification of slavery.
—Cheyanne M. Daniels, The Hill, 5 May 2025
Earlier this year, Sheinbaum defended the arrival of Cuban doctors in Mexico, despite critics arguing that they are treated as virtual slaves under bilateral government agreements.
—Andres Oppenheimer, Miami Herald, 7 May 2025
Verb
Charcoal portraits depict six of the enslaved Africans who were aboard the Amistad, the 19th-century slaving schooner that became the center of a landmark Supreme Court case.
—Kaila Philo, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Jan. 2025
The scholars borrow from critical theory—including a Marxist focus on the alienation of labor and postmodern pessimism—with some going so far as to compare the resorts to slave plantations.
—Richard Feinberg, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for slave
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slave
Noun
-
Ray belongs to a sub/dom gay biker club in which master and servant roles are firmly established by who drives and who rides pillion.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
18 May 2025
-
They were each allowed one or maybe two servants and received food through an opening in a window.—
Joe Hernandez,
NPR,
23 Apr. 2025
Noun
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One was a White farmer, while the others were Black laborers or security workers, police said.—
/ CBS News,
CBS News,
23 May 2025
-
Consider android laborers harvesting crops at night while humans engage in creative endeavors by day.—
Amir Husain,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
Verb
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Brightline has labored to increase ridership along its 170-mile extension to Orlando from West Palm Beach.—
David Lyons,
Sun Sentinel,
20 May 2025
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Each creator contributed immensely to American art and culture, while laboring in an industry that, until recently, produced very little financial rewards or respect.—
Rob Salkowitz,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
Noun
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And that’s exactly what Hub gets when attempting to arrest two criminals who have escaped bail, but who end up catching the bondsman off-guard, shooting him with a shotgun blast (a bulletproof vest saves his life) and then ultimately slitting his throat with a knife.—
Demetrius Patterson,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Apr. 2025
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Hub is a second-generation bondsman, having followed in the footsteps of his acerbic mother — and, as a middle-aged divorcée, roommate — Kitty (Beth Grant).—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Tia Carrere, who voiced Nani in the original, appears in the new film as the social worker Mrs. Kekoa.—
Ralphie Aversa,
USA Today,
23 May 2025
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This creates a closed-loop system where value flows back to both the worker and the business.—
Carlos Netto,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Verb
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While many companies have struggled to define their policies, bouncing between strict return-to-office mandates and hybrid compromises, Logitech has taken a different path.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
-
From dropout to overachiever For most of her life, Mui struggled to fit into society’s mold.—
Ernestine Siu,
CNBC,
23 May 2025
Verb
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Any journey toward elevating procurement performance should begin with a reflection on value, and CPOs must strive to balance supply security with driving cost optimization.—
Matthew Buckingham,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
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What Thornton is striving toward, an embrace of generosity, of humanity being able to change what faith and religion even mean, is often moving.—
Ella Kemp,
IndieWire,
23 May 2025
Noun
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There is no question, the enslaved workers at the Nottoway Plantation during the antebellum era were human chattel.—
Maurice Carlos Ruffin,
Time,
21 May 2025
-
Khartoum was founded as a slave market, in 1821, and Arabs continued to raid southern areas, including the Nuba Mountains, for human chattel long after the practice was outlawed, in 1924.—
Nicolas Niarchos,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Slave.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slave. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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