BONDAGE Synonyms: 29 Similar and Opposite Words

bondage

noun

ˈbän-dij

Definition of bondage

as in slavery

the state of being an enslaved person people freed from bondage

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of bondage The National Park Service is revising interpretations at its sites to offer an upbeat rendering of human bondage, if slavery is mentioned at all. — Drew Gilpin Faust, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026 Even physical bondage could not cancel out God’s promises of freedom that had come generations earlier. — The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 18 Sep. 2026 The idea called for Axl and Erin to be seen in various scenes involving bondage. — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026 Conahan, now 72, acknowledged having a bondage fetish in court but has always denied killing anyone. — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bondage

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bondage

slavery

Noun

Instagram direct messages to a University of Miami football player that included rape imagery, violent slavery imagery, three uses of the N-word and two uses of a homophobic slur are under investigation by the Florida Bar.

— David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 20 Oct. 2026
Lincoln lost that year, but the country benefited from their arguments over the legality and morality of slavery.

— Editorial Board, Washington Post, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of slavery

Browse Nearby Words

bond

bondage

bondages

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Bondage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bondage. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of bondage

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

grotesque

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes