Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Slavery
1.
The condition of a slave; the state of entire subjection of one person to the will of another.
Disguise thyself as thou wilt, still,
slavery
, said I, still thou art a bitter draught! Sterne.
I wish, from my soul, that the legislature of this state [Virginia] could see the policy of a gradual abolition of
slavery
. It might prevent much future mischief. Washington.
2.
A condition of subjection or submission characterized by lack of freedom of action or of will.
The vulgar
slaveries
rich men submit to. C. Lever.
There is a
slavery
that no legislation can abolish, – the slavery
of caste. G. W. Cable.
3.
The holding of slaves.
Syn. – Bondage; servitude; inthrallment; enslavement; captivity; bond service; vassalage.
Webster 1828 Edition
Slavery
SLA'VERY
,Noun.
1.
Bondage; the state of entire subjection of one person to the will of another. Slavery is the obligation to labor for the benefit of the master, without the contract of consent of the servant. Slavery may proceed from crimes, from captivity or from debt. Slavery is also voluntary or involuntary; voluntary, when a person sells or yields his own person to the absolute command of another; involuntary, when he is placed under the absolute power of another without his own consent. Slavery no longer exists in Great Britain, not in the northern states of America.2.
The offices of a slave; drudgery.Definition 2024
slavery
slavery
English
Noun
slavery (usually uncountable, plural slaveries)
- An institution or social practice of owning human beings as property, especially for use as forced laborers.
- A condition of servitude endured by a slave.
- (figuratively) A condition in which one is captivated or subjugated, as by greed or drugs.
- 1818, Percy Bysshe Shelley,"The Revolt of Islam", canto 8, stanza 16,
- Man seeks for gold in mines that he may weave / A lasting chain for his own slavery.
- 1818, Percy Bysshe Shelley,"The Revolt of Islam", canto 8, stanza 16,
See also
Translations
institution or practice of owning human beings
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condition of servitude endured by a slave
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condition in which one is captivated or subjugated
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References
- “slavery” in An American Dictionary of the English Language, by Noah Webster, 1828.
- slavery in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
- “slavery” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.0.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.
- Random House Webster's Unabridged Electronic Dictionary, 1987-1996.