chain gang

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noun

a group of convicts chained together, especially when working outside.

Nearby words

chaillu, paul belloni du, chain, chain coral, chain drive, chain fern, chain gang, chain gear, chain grate, chain letter, chain lightning, chain locker

Origin of chain gang

First recorded in 1825–35

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for chain gang

Some of the largest farms in the South are operated by chain-gang labour.
Following the Color Line|Ray Stannard Baker
Never were sentries more completely taken by surprise than they guarding the chain-gang.
The Free Lances|Mayne Reid
In half an hour the chain-gang starts for the mines, and you are one of them.
The Slave of the Mine|Bracebridge Hemyng
He doesn't know me, but his face is familiar to me, for I have seen him several times at work; in the chain-gang, too.
There She Blows!|William Hussey Macy

The carrying of men and women to the chain-gang was a frequent occurrence.
Tuskegee & Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements|Various

British Dictionary definitions for chain gang

chain gang

noun

US a group of convicted prisoners chained together, usually while doing hard labour

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

chain gang

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of chain gang

Examples from the Web for chain gang

British Dictionary definitions for chain gang

chain gang

noun