Enslavings

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act of subjecting individuals to forced labor and deprivation of freedom, where they are treated as property
2. The process of binding people into servitude, stripping them of autonomy and legal rights
3. A condition in which individuals are made to work against their will, typically for another's benefit and without compensation

Etymology: "Enslavings" is simply the plural of "enslaving," the gerund or verbal noun formed from the verb "enslave." That verb is built from "en-," a prefix meaning "to put into or make," attached to "slave," so it means to put someone into the condition of a slave. The noun "slave" itself traces back through Old French "esclave" to medieval Latin "sclavus," a term that originally referred to the Slavic peoples of Central and Eastern Europe, whose name was widely used for captives sold into servitude.

Synonyms: subjugation, bondage, captivity

Antonyms: freedom, liberation