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peon

1 American  
[pee-uhn, pee-on] / ˈpi ən, ˈpi ɒn /

noun

  1. (in Spanish America) a farm worker or unskilled laborer; day laborer.

  2. (formerly, especially in Mexico) a person held in servitude to work off debts or other obligations.

  3. any person of low social status, especially one who does work regarded as menial or unskilled; drudge.

peon 2 American  
[pee-uhn, pee-on] / ˈpi ən, ˈpi ɒn /

noun

  1. a messenger, attendant, or orderly.

  2. a foot soldier or police officer.

peon 1 British  
/ ˈpiːɒn, ˈpiːən /

noun

  1. a Spanish-American farm labourer or unskilled worker

  2. (formerly in Spanish America) a debtor compelled to work off his debts

  3. any very poor person

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
peon 2 British  
/ ˈpiːɒn, pjuːn, ˈpiːən /

noun

  1. a messenger or attendant, esp in an office

  2. a native policeman

  3. a foot soldier

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does peon mean? A peon is a person of low social status, especially one who does unskilled work and is poorly treated.Peon was once used in a more specific way to refer to farmworkers and other unskilled laborers in Mexico and parts of the United States.Example: People are going to keep quitting if management keeps treating them like peons.

Etymology

Origin of peon1

1820–30; < Spanish peón peasant, day laborer < Vulgar Latin *pedōn- (stem of *pedō ) walker (whence Medieval Latin pedōnēs infantry, Old French peon pawn 2 ), derivative of Latin ped- (stem of pēs ) foot

Origin of peon2

1600–10; < Portuguese peão, French pion foot soldier, pedestrian, day laborer. See peon 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

You, the peon in this unequal relationship, are the one who’s supposed to make the pilgrimage to pay your respects to the king.

From Washington Post • Jun. 6, 2022

“It must be done. It is the only measure that will really abolish slavery. It is the only guarantee against peon laws and against oppression.”

From New York Times • Feb. 15, 2020

As I said, though, those first few nights, it was clear my peon sack would not be multiplied.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 4, 2019

Bheg was responsible for a small detachment of soldiers, and had a gruelling routine, guarding the camp, carrying letters and working as a peon for higher officials of the regiment.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2018

“A peon? Didn’t you see The Magnificent Seven? Peons was them folks what was so poor that the rich folks would just as soon pee on them as anything else.”

From "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.