slavery

[ sley-vuh-ree, sleyv-ree ]

noun

1. the condition of being enslaved, held, or owned as human chattel or property; bondage.

   Synonyms: enthrallment, thralldom

2. a practice or institution that treats or recognizes some human beings as the legal property of others.
3. a state of subjection like that of a slave:

   He longed to escape the slavery of drug addiction.

4. severe toil; drudgery.

   Synonyms: labor, moil

slavery

/ ˈsleɪvərɪ /

noun

1. the state or condition of being a slave; a civil relationship whereby one person has absolute power over another and controls his life, liberty, and fortune
2. the subjection of a person to another person, esp in being forced into work
3. the condition of being subject to some influence or habit
4. work done in harsh conditions for low pay

Other Words From

• pre·slaver·y adjective noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of slavery¹

First recorded in 1545–55; slav(e) + -ery

Synonym Study

Slavery, bondage, servitude refer to involuntary subjection to another or others. Slavery emphasizes the idea of complete ownership and control by an owner or master: to be sold into slavery. Bondage indicates a state of subjugation or captivity often involving burdensome and degrading labor: in bondage to a cruel master. Servitude is compulsory service, often such as is required by a legal penalty: penal servitude.

Example Sentences

Other than slavery, which was a different kind of restraint, this is the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history.

From Washington Post

We went through birth pains through the Middle Passage, the abolition of slavery.

From Essence.com

At the time of reading, I was already quite aware of the horrors of slavery, and disgusted by the prison industrial complex and school-to-prison pipeline.

From Fortune

The California Constitution banned slavery in 1850 but did not prohibit slaveowners from other parts of the country from bringing their human property into the Golden State.

From Voice of San Diego

By upholding slavery as an institution elsewhere, one could argue — and indeed many are arguing in Sacramento right now — that state and local authorities in the mid-19th century were complicit in evil.

From Voice of San Diego

Rather, human trafficking, like slavery in the past, is a way of demoralizing the conquered.

From The Daily Beast

The consequences of slavery are still inherent in the lives of black people.

From The Daily Beast

I suggest you read my book Technological Slavery,” his letter concludes, “which you can probably get from amazon.com.

From The Daily Beast

Calhoun supported state nullification of federal laws and gave a speech to Congress titled “Slavery as a Positive Good.”

From The Daily Beast

And Daniel Webster, a great opponent of slavery, supported the vile Compromise of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act and all.

From The Daily Beast

But this alliance is rotten, and cannot endure; the Western men are no partizans of slavery.

From Project Gutenberg

I cannot reconcile the idea of a tender Heavenly Father with the known horrors of war, slavery, pestilence, and insanity.

From Project Gutenberg

“Lecompton” constitution of Kansas was a pro-slavery document which Buchanan favoured.

From Project Gutenberg

The bond of marriage seemed an accursed thing, the mere slavery of women.

From Project Gutenberg

The sugar of Cuba is the finest in the world; but in Cuba, slavery is unparalleled in its horrors.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• bondage
• captivity
• enslavement
• serfdom
• servitude
• subjugation