thrall
1 of 2noun
ˈthrȯl 
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
Elyne Mitchell2
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
ˈthrȯl-dəm
thrall
2 of 2verb
thralled; thralling; thralls
transitive verb
archaic
: enthrall, enslave
Synonyms
Noun
- bondman
- bondsman
- chattel
- slave
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
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 Guy Lodge, Variety, 9 Sep. 2022 How best to counter the politics of a Republican Party in thrall to Trump is not obvious. Kim Phillips-fein, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 It is often said that the invasion of Ukraine is a reconjuring of the spirit of Mother Russia—or the resurrection of some dead fascist thinker, such as Ivan Ilyin—to which Putin is in thrall. Thomas Geoghegan, The New Republic, 31 Aug. 2022 Thomas Hart Benton, Jackson Pollock and Philip Guston were just three among hundreds of American artists who spent periods in thrall to the Mexican muralists. Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 25 Aug. 2022 Venice, the unchanging city, seems in the thrall of energy that is brand new. Nathan Heller, Vogue, 23 Aug. 2022 The court, for most of its history, has been very much in the thrall of economically and politically powerful groups. Kk Ottesen, Washington Post, 16 Aug. 2022 If politicians remain in thrall to the National Rifle Assn. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2022 Stephen Mallon, a photographer in the Hudson Valley of New York, has long been in the thrall of trains, among other large machines. Terence Monmaney, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 July 2022 See More
Noun
The music itself aligns too, with Emerson’s late-‘70s brand of soft rock and blue-eyed soul audibly in thrall to Wilson’s writing and densely layered production style. Guy Lodge, Variety, 9 Sep. 2022 How best to counter the politics of a Republican Party in thrall to Trump is not obvious. Kim Phillips-fein, The Atlantic, 6 Sep. 2022 It is often said that the invasion of Ukraine is a reconjuring of the spirit of Mother Russia—or the resurrection of some dead fascist thinker, such as Ivan Ilyin—to which Putin is in thrall. Thomas Geoghegan, The New Republic, 31 Aug. 2022 Thomas Hart Benton, Jackson Pollock and Philip Guston were just three among hundreds of American artists who spent periods in thrall to the Mexican muralists. Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 25 Aug. 2022 Venice, the unchanging city, seems in the thrall of energy that is brand new. Nathan Heller, Vogue, 23 Aug. 2022 The court, for most of its history, has been very much in the thrall of economically and politically powerful groups. Kk Ottesen, Washington Post, 16 Aug. 2022 If politicians remain in thrall to the National Rifle Assn. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2022 Stephen Mallon, a photographer in the Hudson Valley of New York, has long been in the thrall of trains, among other large machines. Terence Monmaney, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 July 2022 See More 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
Phrases Containing thrall
thralls
noun
1
as in slaves
a person who is considered the property of another person I'm not your thrall, so you'll have to pick up after yourself Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- slaves
- servants
- bondmen
- chattels
- bondsmen
- serfs
- helots
- menials
- bondwomen
- lackeys
- handmaidens
- domestics
- handmaids
- drudges
- bondswomen
- bond servants
- odalisques
- attendants
- indentured servants
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- freemen
- freedmen
- slavers
- masters
- slaveholders
- enslavers
- freedwomen
- taskmasters
- slave drivers
2
as in slaveries
the state of being an enslaved person a people who still bear the scars of having been in thrall for so many years Synonyms & Similar Words
- slaveries
- enslavements
- bondages
- subjugations
- servitudes
- yokes
- captivities
- servilities
- thraldoms
- thralldoms
- subjections
- serfdoms
- incarcerations
- dependances
- enchainments
- imprisonments
- dependences
- peonages
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- freedoms
- liberties
- emancipations
- liberations
- manumissions
- enfranchisements
- autonomies
- independences
- sovereignties
- sovranties