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blackbirding

American  
[blak-bur-ding] / ˈblækˌbɜr dɪŋ /

noun

  1. History/Historical. the act or practice of kidnapping people, especially Pacific Islanders, and selling them into slavery abroad, usually in Australia.

Etymology

Origin of blackbirding

First recorded in 1870–75; blackbird + -ing 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A man might have been made by copra or by pearls—or by blackbirding.

From The Best Short Stories of 1921 and the Yearbook of the American Short Story by O'Brien, Edward J. (Edward Joseph Harrington)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.