1
: a member of a European class of persons tilling the soil as small landowners or as laborers
This land was farmed by peasants for centuries.
also
: a member of a similar class elsewhere
2
: a usually uneducated person of low social status
They treated us like a bunch of peasants.
Examples of peasant in a Sentence
They treated us like a bunch of peasants.
Recent Examples on the Web
In the crowd jostling around them, the women wore peasant skirts and striped sailors’ tops, and none of the men, apart from these two, were wearing ties.
—
Tessa Hadley, The New Yorker, 23 June 2024
For tales of wounds that do not heal, kings who sacrifice themselves for the good of the people, slaves who are really princes, peasants whose generosity is known to the gods—and gods who die and are born again?
—John Ganz, Harper's Magazine, 22 May 2024
The Making of Modern Turkey: from Byzantium to Angora
The author, Lieutenant-Governor of Malta, emphasizes that Atatürk's great service has been to restore Turkey to its surest foundation -- the Anatolian peasant.
—Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024
In Soviet times, some folk songs were taught in schools, performed by ensembles and generally used for propaganda, but the authorities ended up turning them into a poor imitation of folk peasant culture, experts say.
—Daria Mitiuk Brendan Hoffman, New York Times, 5 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for peasant 
Tessa Hadley, The New Yorker, 23 June 2024
For tales of wounds that do not heal, kings who sacrifice themselves for the good of the people, slaves who are really princes, peasants whose generosity is known to the gods—and gods who die and are born again?
—John Ganz, Harper's Magazine, 22 May 2024
The Making of Modern Turkey: from Byzantium to Angora
The author, Lieutenant-Governor of Malta, emphasizes that Atatürk's great service has been to restore Turkey to its surest foundation -- the Anatolian peasant.
—Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024
In Soviet times, some folk songs were taught in schools, performed by ensembles and generally used for propaganda, but the authorities ended up turning them into a poor imitation of folk peasant culture, experts say.
—Daria Mitiuk Brendan Hoffman, New York Times, 5 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for peasant
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'peasant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near peasant
Cite this Entry
“Peasant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peasant. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
peasant
noun
peas·ant
ˈpez-ᵊnt 
1
: a European small farmer or farm laborer
2
: a member of a similar agricultural class elsewhere
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