serfdom

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of serfdom Johnson envisioned a postwar order in which former slaves would transition into permanent serfdom, destined for labor but no independent economic life and no place in politics. David W. Blight, Foreign Affairs, 8 Dec. 2020 As the Big Three continue to drive down the road to serfdom, car production will continue in the United States. The Editors, National Review, 18 Sep. 2023 Following Mexico's independence in 1821, a small landowning elite replaced the colonial rulers, and most of the farmers (except those who joined farming collectives) transitioned from slavery to serfdom. Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2023 The pandemic decreased competition among laborers, raising wages and putting the oppressive system of serfdom in a death spiral. Cody Cassidy, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 June 2023 See All Example Sentences for serfdom
Recent Examples of Synonyms for serfdom
Noun
  • The Black community’s relationship with growing food is colored by exploitive practices, from slavery to sharecropping, tenant farming and peonage, or debt servitude.
    Lyndsay C. Green, Detroit Free Press, 27 Nov. 2024
  • The Black community’s relationship with growing food is colored by exploitive practices, from slavery to sharecropping, tenant farming and peonage, or debt servitude.
    Lyndsay C. Green, Detroit Free Press, 27 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Many women left the punitive existence of domestic servitude and escaped to the booming city by the sea.
    Claire Hoffman, Rolling Stone, 20 Apr. 2025
  • The people are crying out for relief from medical servitude and the Trump administration keeps doubling down on the oppression.
    Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • States gained additional representation in Congress and in the Electoral College, thereby entrenching slavery in the national political framework.
    Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Apr. 2025
  • By Scott Spillman The book is less about slavery than about how Americans have thought, written, and wrestled with it for more than 200 years.
    Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Details include smooth gold hardware, western yoke accents and floral embroidery.
    Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 22 Apr. 2025
  • From its Western yoke stitching to its pearl snaps, every little detail in this shirt was designed for a fashionable look that doesn’t stand out too much for daily wear.
    Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 8 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The court declared that this man was free and could not be held in bondage.
    Ari Daniel, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Apr. 2025
  • Reverend Back says Easter is the oldest of Christian celebrations, Jesus’s tradition of Passover, according to Hebrews — from bondage into freedom and for Christians — from death into life.
    Gina Grillo, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Serfdom.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/serfdom. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!