peon
1 Americannoun
-
(in Spanish America) a farm worker or unskilled laborer; day laborer.
-
(formerly, especially in Mexico) a person held in servitude to work off debts or other obligations.
-
any person of low social status, especially one who does work regarded as menial or unskilled; drudge.
noun
-
a messenger, attendant, or orderly.
-
a foot soldier or police officer.
noun
-
a Spanish-American farm labourer or unskilled worker
-
(formerly in Spanish America) a debtor compelled to work off his debts
-
any very poor person
noun
-
a messenger or attendant, esp in an office
-
a native policeman
-
a foot soldier
Usage
What does peon mean? A peon is a person of low social status, especially one who does unskilled work and is poorly treated.Peon was once used in a more specific way to refer to farmworkers and other unskilled laborers in Mexico and parts of the United States.Example: People are going to keep quitting if management keeps treating them like peons.
Etymology
Origin of peon1
1820–30; < Spanish peón peasant, day laborer < Vulgar Latin *pedōn- (stem of *pedō ) walker (whence Medieval Latin pedōnēs infantry, Old French peon pawn 2 ), derivative of Latin ped- (stem of pēs ) foot
Origin of peon2
1600–10; < Portuguese peão, French pion foot soldier, pedestrian, day laborer. See peon 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.
During the same press conference in Dhaka, she said she had taken action against a household assistant – or peon - after he allegedly amassed $34 million.
From BBC • Jul. 20, 2024
You, the peon in this unequal relationship, are the one who’s supposed to make the pilgrimage to pay your respects to the king.
From Washington Post • Jun. 6, 2022
As I said, though, those first few nights, it was clear my peon sack would not be multiplied.
From The New Yorker • Mar. 4, 2019
You don’t want to make them feel like a peon just because you’re having lunch.”
From New York Times • Jul. 14, 2017
“A peon? Didn’t you see The Magnificent Seven? Peons was them folks what was so poor that the rich folks would just as soon pee on them as anything else.”
From "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" by Christopher Paul Curtis
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.
