indentured

[ in-den-cherd ]

/ ɪnˈdɛn tʃərd /

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adjective

bound by or occurring under a written contract or formal agreement, especially to work for another: The five indentured electrical apprentices of the second-year class were sworn into the union on Thursday.Born in Belfast in 1949, he studied art while serving an indentured apprenticeship at a shipyard.

relating to, done by, or being an indentured servant: Molly Welsh, an Englishwoman sentenced to indentured servitude in 17th-century Maryland, married an African slave named Bannaka.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of indenture.

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of indentured

indenture + -ed²

OTHER WORDS FROM indentured

un·in·den·tured, adjective

Words nearby indentured

indene, indent, indentation, indention, indenture, indentured, indentured servant, independence, Independence Day, Independence Hall, independence of path

How to use indentured in a sentence

She still wants indentured servants—excuse me, wards—to run the hospital for her, and she still wants power over all of them.
The Walking Dead’s Midseason Finale Shocker: A Cherished Character Meets a Grisly End|Melissa Leon|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
During construction, many men, indentured servants in the beginning, were blown apart during the blasting and digging.
Washington’s Wheeler-Dealer Patriotism|William O’Connor|October 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If the indentured-servitude thesis is correct, it should be a pretty low number, right?
Liberals’ College Hoops Pity Party|Michael Tomasky|March 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Johnson—and other black indentured servants—were able to succeed in 17th-century Virginia.
Slavery As ‘Innovation’ and Other Provocative Ideas: What I Learned From Henry Louis Gates’s ‘Many Rivers to Cross’|Jamelle Bouie|October 22, 2013|DAILY BEAST

The white Hempstead, for instance, worked his way out of indentured servitude, the next step up from slavery.
Was Slavery as Harmful in the North as It Was in the South?|Eric Herschthal|May 7, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In addition to the regular settlers at Jamestown, from time to time indentured servants came to America.
Hallowed Heritage: The Life of Virginia|Dorothy M. Torpey
The Negroes seemed to be more easily adaptable to hard, manual labor than the Indians or indentured white servants had been.
Hallowed Heritage: The Life of Virginia|Dorothy M. Torpey
To be apprenticed then was to be absolutely indentured; to belong to the master for a term of years.
Steam Steel and Electricity|James W. Steele
Hughson had in his service an indentured servant,—a girl of sixteen years,—named Mary Burton.
History of the Negro Race in America From 1619 to 1880. Vol 1|George W. Williams
One was instigated by a perjurer and a heretic, the other by an indentured servant, in all probability from a convict ship.
History of the Negro Race in America From 1619 to 1880. Vol 1|George W. Williams