Synonyms for

Slave

Verb / sleɪv / Another word for slave — explore alternatives below. For syllable breakdowns and pronunciation, see this word on Syllablesworld.

Definition

A person who is owned by another person and is forced to work for them without pay.

Synonyms & similar words

hardworker breakonesback striver buckledown knuckledown bondman bondslave chattel serf thrall drudge peon vassal servant laborer worker captive prisoner subject subordinate victim oppressed enslaved subjugated

Synonyms by register

Formal

enslaved person bondservant thrall

Informal

chump patsy tool

Literary

thrall helot thrall

Antonyms

freeman liberator master owner ruler sovereign

Common collocations

  • slave labor
  • slave owner
  • slave trade
  • slave revolt
  • slave mentality
  • slave state
  • slave driver

Word family

noun slavery
verb enslave
adjective enslaved

Usage note

The term 'slave' is highly sensitive and carries significant historical weight. While 'enslaved person' is often preferred in academic and sensitive contexts to emphasize the condition rather than identity, 'slave' remains in common usage.

Example sentences

  1. The plantation owner owned many slaves.
  2. Slavery was abolished in the United States in 1865.
  3. The slave worked hard in the hot sun.
  4. The slave revolted against his master.
  5. The slave was sold to another plantation.

Quotes

  • I would rather be a slave than a freedman.
  • The slave is doomed to worship time and fate and death, because they are greater than anything he finds in himself, and because all his thoughts are of things which they devour.
  • The slave has but one master, the ambitious man has as many as there are persons whose aid may contribute to the advancement of his fortunes.

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