slave labor

American  

noun

1. persons, especially a large group, performing labor under duress or threats, as prisoners in a concentration camp; a labor force of slaves or slavelike prisoners.

2. labor done by such a labor force.

3. any coerced or poorly remunerated work.

   Data entry at that salary is slave labor.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• slave-labor
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of slave labor

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

An avaricious, envious flirt on the undisguised lookout for something better, she is angry that John wouldn’t use slave labor to build their house.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 26, 2026

With the 1793 invention of the cotton gin—which separated cotton fibers from its seeds with a previously undreamed-of efficiency—America’s plantation economy expanded exponentially and so did its use of slave labor.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 28, 2025

“It’s not down to paying Canadians less or slave labor or having different governmental incentives,” said Johnston.

From Slate • Mar. 8, 2025

They also feared slave labor would instill laziness among Georgia’s settlers, who were expected to tend their own modest farms.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 16, 2024

The older children were “hired out” by the master, Edward Brodas, to farmers who needed slave labor but who could not afford to buy slaves.

From "Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad" by Ann Petry