peon
peon Lexical Profile
peon Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A person of low rank or authority, often one who performs menial, tedious, or unrewarding work; an unskilled subordinate or drudge.
"As a summer intern, he felt like a mere peon fetching coffee and filing paperwork for the senior partners."
In Spanish America, a day laborer or farmworker, or historically, an impoverished person bound in servitude to work off a debt to a landlord or creditor.
"During the colonial era, many rural estates relied heavily on the labor of indebted peons."
In South and Southeast Asia, an office attendant, messenger, or orderly.
"The office peon delivered the signed circulars to the various department heads."
Word Nuance & Usage
In modern informal usage, 'peon' is often used humorously or disparagingly to describe a low-ranking employee or subordinate who performs menial tasks.
• Rhymes for peon
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Spanish 'peón' (meaning 'day laborer' or 'foot soldier') and Portuguese 'peão', both derived from Late Latin 'pedōnem' ('foot soldier'), from Latin 'pēs' ('foot'); it is an etymological doublet of 'pawn'.