slave labor

noun

variants US slave labor or chiefly British slave labour
1
: work that is done by enslaved people or by people who are treated as though they are enslaved
prisoners being forced to do slave labor
a slave labor camp
2
: enslaved people doing work
The pyramids were built by slave labor.
slave laborer noun
(chiefly US) or chiefly British slave labourer
plural slave laborers
… The Statue of Freedom—the figure of a Native American woman warrior that stands on the dome—was cast in bronze by slave laborers in 1863 and hoisted up there. Jack E. White

Examples of slave labor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Want to make carbon-intensive steel with slave labor? Michael Beckley, Foreign Affairs, 14 Feb. 2022 Vance reiterated the campaign's call for tariffs, saying some Chinese companies employ slave labor and shouldn't be able to sell their products in the U.S. without paying a price. John Wisely, Detroit Free Press, 4 Nov. 2024 The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution outlawing slavery–except in one instance–further gave Louisiana and other states a legal opening for the continuance of slave labor. Chadd Scott, Forbes, 19 Sep. 2024 Temu didn’t respond to inquiries about slave labor in its supply chain. Gabrielle Fonrouge, NBC News, 14 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for slave labor 

Word History

First Known Use

1802, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of slave labor was in 1802

Dictionary Entries Near slave labor

Cite this Entry

“Slave labor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slave%20labor. Accessed 29 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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