1. a person who enslaves others or holds people in slavery
Usage: often used in historical contexts; can refer to individuals or groups who practice slavery

Examples

• The enslavers of the American South built their wealth on the forced labor of millions.
• Historical records document the names of many enslavers who operated in the colonial period.
• Abolitionists fought against the enslavers and their system of human bondage.
• The enslavers justified their actions through racist ideologies.
• Descendants of enslavers have begun to reckon with their family histories.
• Enslaved people resisted their enslavers through rebellion and escape.