thrall

1 of 2

noun

plural thralls
1
a
: a state of servitude or submission
usually used with in
in thrall to his emotions
b
: a state of complete absorption
usually used with in
… mountains could hold me in thrall with a subtle attraction of their own …Elyne Mitchell
2
a
: an enslaved person who performs the duties of a servant : bondman
also : serf
b
: a person in moral or mental servitude
thrall adjective
thralldom noun
or thraldom

thrall

2 of 2

verb

thralled; thralling; thralls

Examples of thrall in a Sentence

Noun I'm not your thrall, so you'll have to pick up after yourself. a people who still bear the scars of having been in thrall for so many years
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.
Noun
Under his thrall, the anti-immigrant wing of the GOP has mushroomed, its rhetoric increasingly frightening to Chamber of Commerce types, many told me in interviews. Eli Hager, ProPublica, 25 Oct. 2024 Celebrities are really in the thralls of them right now. Alyssa Grabinski, People.com, 2 Nov. 2024 Mary Ellis emerges from the silo and transfers Assassin to Travis, freeing the real Mary Ellis from her thrall. James Grebey, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2024 Only vampire hunters, like the titular D—a half-vampire, half-human dhampir—can hope to stand up to the vampire’s supernatural might, and in the ‘85 film, D agrees to hunt down a 10,000-year-old vampire lord in order to prevent a young woman from falling under his thrall. James Grebey, TIME, 18 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for thrall 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English thral, from Old English thræl, from Old Norse thræll

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of thrall was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near thrall

Cite this Entry

“Thrall.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thrall. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

thrall

noun
ˈthrȯl
1
: an enslaved person
2
a
: a state of servitude or submission
in thrall to his emotions
b
: a state of complete attention
the play held me in thrall
thralldom noun
or thraldom
ˈthrȯl-dəm

More from Merriam-Webster on thrall

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!