Underground Railroad

noun

variants or less commonly Underground Railway
: a system of cooperation among active antislavery people in the U.S. before 1863 by which people escaping enslavement were secretly helped to reach the North or Canada

Examples of Underground Railroad in a Sentence

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.
Vereen stars as an Underground Railroad conductor who acts as an advisor, confidant and asset to the women for their spy ring. — Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 19 June 2026 Quakers were also instrumental in the execution of the Underground Railroad. — Tesfaye Negussie, ABC News, 3 July 2026 An extensive Underground Railroad network ran through Connecticut. — Calista Oetama, Hartford Courant, 22 June 2026 And one of the things that was really fascinating to me is that there has been a bit of revisionist history and a lot of white Americans in particular talk about how their families played a key role in the Underground Railroad. — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 3 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for Underground Railroad

Word History

First Known Use

1842, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Underground Railroad was in 1842

Rhymes for Underground Railroad

See All Rhymes for Underground Railroad

Browse Nearby Words

undergrounder
Underground Railroad
undergrove
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Underground Railroad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Underground%20Railroad. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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Kids Definition

Underground Railroad

noun
: a system of cooperation among active antislavery people in the U.S. before 1863 by which people escaping enslavement were secretly helped to reach the North or Canada

More from Merriam-Webster on Underground Railroad

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about Underground Railroad

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