enslaver
noun
en·slav·er
in-ˈslā-vər 
en-
plural enslavers
1
: someone or something that forces one or more people into or as if into slavery
The more I read, the more I was led to abhor and detest my enslavers. I could regard them in no other light than a band of successful robbers, who had left their homes, and gone to Africa, and stolen us from our homes …—
Frederick Douglass
Frederick DouglassThe opera's libretto depicts Columbus as hungry for gold and an enslaver of the Tainos …—Bill Kaufman
Bill Kaufman… writings and textbooks and pamphlets—some 100 years old—calling tobacco foul, poisonous, an enslaver of the mind and soul.—Matthew Ebner
Matthew Ebner2
: slaveholder
Six years after she was enslaved on Spanish Point, Prince's enslaver sold her again to another slaveholder …—Christopher Michael Blakley
Christopher Michael Blakley… the Fugitive Slave Act was a source of contention for communities in the North that were torn about whether to comply with returning former slaves to their enslavers.—Bethany Bump
Bethany BumpExamples of enslaver in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
His family history shows how violence and rape in the era of chattel slavery can be felt over the generations, both for the family of the enslavers and for the enslaved.
—Ken Makin, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 Jan. 2025
The shopkeepers, William Perry and Cephas Parker, in turn told Northup’s wife, Anne, and his attorney, Henry Bliss Northup, a relative of the former enslaver of Northup’s father.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Jan. 2025
Slave fugitive Harriet Jacobs detailed that these annual abductions and the destruction of Black families caused some to resist being sold to new enslavers.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
To build houses, they were forced to lease land from the former enslavers who at a whim could terminate their employment or kick them off the land.
—Farah Nibbs, The Conversation, 22 Oct. 2024
What these founders knew about the weather ruled their daily paths as farmers, politicians and enslavers.
—Sara Georgini, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Jan. 2025
Félicité encouraged the entire country to finally savor the soup they had long been forbidden by their enslavers to enjoy.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
Frederick Douglass, by Sidney Morrison Frederick Douglass roars from the pages of this meticulous novel, thanks to the voices of his steadfast wife, Anna, and their children, plus confidants, paramours, and even enslavers.
—Staff, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Dec. 2024
The late Marie Delphine LaLaurie is remembered as both a wealthy New Orleans socialite and an enslaver, and her gruesome legacy is tied to a historic mansion on Royal Street, which has been seen on America’s Most Haunted Homes and depicted on FX’s American Horror Story: Coven.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 10 July 2024
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Ken Makin, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 Jan. 2025
The shopkeepers, William Perry and Cephas Parker, in turn told Northup’s wife, Anne, and his attorney, Henry Bliss Northup, a relative of the former enslaver of Northup’s father.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Jan. 2025
Slave fugitive Harriet Jacobs detailed that these annual abductions and the destruction of Black families caused some to resist being sold to new enslavers.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
To build houses, they were forced to lease land from the former enslavers who at a whim could terminate their employment or kick them off the land.
—Farah Nibbs, The Conversation, 22 Oct. 2024
What these founders knew about the weather ruled their daily paths as farmers, politicians and enslavers.
—Sara Georgini, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Jan. 2025
Félicité encouraged the entire country to finally savor the soup they had long been forbidden by their enslavers to enjoy.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
Frederick Douglass, by Sidney Morrison Frederick Douglass roars from the pages of this meticulous novel, thanks to the voices of his steadfast wife, Anna, and their children, plus confidants, paramours, and even enslavers.
—Staff, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Dec. 2024
The late Marie Delphine LaLaurie is remembered as both a wealthy New Orleans socialite and an enslaver, and her gruesome legacy is tied to a historic mansion on Royal Street, which has been seen on America’s Most Haunted Homes and depicted on FX’s American Horror Story: Coven.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 10 July 2024
Dictionary Entries Near enslaver
Cite this Entry
“Enslaver.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/enslaver. Accessed 26 Jan. 2025.
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