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bondage

bondage

16 8.6
A state of being controlled and treated like a slave by another person
  • noun
  • /ˈbɒndɪdʒ/
translation icon : esclavitud
  • Many were former slaves, emancipated from a life of bondage and sent directly to freedom in Liberia.
  • escape from bondage
  • deliverance from bondage
  • release from bondage

Because they work to release us from human bondage into human freedom.

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Examples

  • Four hundred years in bondage, and today he won't move!

  • By their crimes, realms and nations which used to live free are brought into bondage against the will of God!

  • Because they work to release us from human bondage into human freedom.

  • Our brothers and sisters live in bondage.

  • I think it's the chain by which he holds us all in bondage.

  • And then, for those elected, a release from bondage through the miracle of art.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Don't you remember what it was like when your people were in bondage?

    Academic text (2010)
  • I've read some old documents which predict a king will come to lead the Jews out of bondage.

  • Abolishing slavery by constitutional provision settles the fate for all coming time not only of the millions now in bondage but of unborn millions to come.

  • Many people suffered in bondage during the transatlantic slave trade.

Synonyms

slave
vsbondage
746 3.4

A person legally owned by someone else who must work without pay or freedom

describes the state of being under control rather than the owned person
captivity
vsbondage
102 3.7

A state of being kept somewhere and not allowed to leave

is the wider notion of lack of freedom beyond service or forced labor
slavery
vsbondage
63 3.5

A situation where one person controls another person and they have no freedom

is a broader word for that condition used across servitude contexts
captive
vsbondage
54 4.2

Kept as a prisoner and not free

is broader, covering control by many means not only forced service
servitude
vsbondage
  • NSFW
31 8.9

To be forced to work for and obey another person like a slave

focuses more generally on lack of freedom under another rather than punishment aspects
enslavement
vsbondage
  • NSFW
17 6.3

Being forced to work for someone as their slave

is the general state of being under another's control rather than the making
thrall
vsbondage
  • NSFW
8 9.9

Being completely controlled by someone or something

refers more to the state of control in social or legal terms
thralldom
vsbondage
  • NSFW
1 9.9

Being under another person's control

is the wider term for being under another's control rather than the label
bondservant
vsbondage
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A person who must work for another person by law, often like a servant in the past

emphasizes the state of being under control rather than the historical servant role
bondsman
vsbondage
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A person legally forced to work for another without pay

is about the broader condition of being under another's control rather than the man
bondwoman
vsbondage
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A woman who is owned by someone and forced to work

emphasizes the condition of being controlled rather than the female individual
bondmaid
vsbondage
  • NSFW
1 9.9

A woman forced to work for another person without pay

focuses on the general state of being under control rather than the female role
bond servant
vsbondage
  • Archaic
9.9

A person forced to work without pay for someone else

focuses on the state of control rather than the individual bound to serve
bondman
vsbondage
  • Archaic
9.9

A man who is forced to work for another person and has no freedom

points to the general state of lack of freedom rather than the male figure
bondswoman
vsbondage
  • Archaic
9.9

A woman held as a slave who is forced to work without pay

is the term for the overall condition of being under another's control

Antonyms

489 1.1

Not having to do something a rule requires

127 3.9

The act of setting people free from control or unfair treatment

How Free

freedom
1.0
indenture
  • Formal
10 9.4
servitude
  • NSFW
31 8.9
bondage
16 8.6
slavery
63 3.5

Surface Forms

bondage singular
bondages plural

Morphology

bondage = bond (semi-transparent) = bond + age

The word is historically built from 'bond' + '-age', but the modern sense 'state of slavery or servitude' is somewhat specialized and not fully predictable for a learner.

Etymology

Bondage comes from the old word bond meaning 'to bind' or 'to tie', plus the ending -age meaning 'a state'. So it originally meant the state of being tied up, which is why it now refers to being under another person's control or in slavery.