servility

noun

Definition of servilitynext
as in slavery
the state of being an enslaved person the joy that emancipation must have brought to people who had known only servility since birth

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 servility Though the national independence be blurred by the servility of individuals, though freedom and equality have been proclaimed only to leave room for a monstrous display of slave-dealing and slave-keeping . — Ann Manov, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for servility
  1. slavery
  2. servitude
Noun
  • On the Eastern Plains near Manzanola, Alice Craig McDonald, 91, lives near the homestead her grandparents claimed after leaving Oklahoma by wagon in 1916 -- descendants of people born into slavery who came west looking for land of their own.
    — Anna Alejo, CBS News, 31 July 2026
  • Tracing the arc of American history, the Urban League describes Black Americans’ struggle for emancipation from slavery and equal economic and political rights as a gruesome but optimistic part of the American story.
    — Matt Brown, Fortune, 30 July 2026
Definition of slavery
Noun
  • Countless stories of Zeke’s kindness, bravery and commitment to a life of servitude took up the nearly eight-hour hearing.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
  • On the other hand, the court dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims that withholding privileges or credits constituted involuntary servitude.
    — Julia Bowling, The Conversation, 29 May 2026
Definition of servitude

Browse Nearby Words

servilities
servility
serving
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Cite this Entry

“Servility.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/servility. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

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