peonage
Americannoun
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the condition or service of a peon.
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the practice of holding persons in servitude or partial slavery, as to work off a debt or to serve a penal sentence.
noun
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the state of being a peon
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a system in which a debtor must work for his creditor until the debt is paid off
Etymology
Origin of peonage
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.
The peonage system lasted across the South for seven decades until World War II, yet many Americans have never heard of it.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 23, 2021
During the next two centuries, New England Indians also suffered indentured servitude, convict labor, and debt peonage, which often resulted in the enslavement of the debtor’s children.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 18, 2019
Alabama yeomen had returned from the Civil War to face a sea change in agriculture, with those formerly independent farmers joining former slaves in peonage to the large landholders.
From New York Times ● Sep. 30, 2017
Before Brandeis joined the court, John Marshall Harlan wrote two landmark dissents about racial segregation and discrimination; Justice Charles Evans Hughes wrote a majority opinion about the evils of Alabama’s peonage system.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2016
They include also serfage, vassalage, villanage, peonage, and all other forms of compulsory service for the mere benefit or pleasure of others.
From The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 11 (of 12) Dresden Edition?Miscellany by Robert Green Ingersoll
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