slave
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slave
A person who is the property of another person, has no personal rights, and is forced to work.
In der römischen Antike verrichteten Sklaven einen Großteil der schweren Arbeit.
In ancient Rome, slaves performed a large part of the hard labor.
slave
In a figurative sense, a person who is completely dependent on or controlled by something or someone.
Er ist ein Sklave seiner Gewohnheiten und kann nichts an seinem Tagesablauf ändern.
He is a slave to his habits and can't change anything about his daily routine.
'Der Sklave' (the slave) belongs to the N-declension. This means it takes the ending '-n' in all cases except the nominative singular.
Das Leben eines Sklaven war hart.
The life of a slave was hard.
The word 'Sklave' (slave) has a very strong historical meaning. In its literal form, it is used today mainly in historical or legal contexts.
Die Ausstellung thematisiert die Geschichte der Sklaven in Nordamerika.
The exhibition addresses the history of slaves in North America.
In the figurative meaning, 'Sklave' (slave) is often used with the preposition 'von' (of/from) or a genitive to express dependence. For example, someone can be 'ein Sklave der Gewohnheit' (a slave of habit) or 'ein Sklave des Geldes' (a slave of money).
Er ist ein Sklave seiner Arbeit und hat nie Freizeit.
He is a slave to his work and never has any free time.
prisoner / captive
For a person who is completely unfree because of fear, both Sklave and Gefangener can be used metaphorically. Sklave places greater emphasis on submission to fear, while Gefangener focuses more on being trapped and lacking freedom. Sklave fits a dominating power, while Gefangener fits strong inner restriction.
Er war ein Sklave seiner Angst und wagte keinen Schritt nach draußen.
He was a slave to his fear and did not dare take a single step outside.
Er war ein Gefangener seiner Angst und wagte keinen Schritt nach draußen.
He was a prisoner of his fear and did not dare take a single step outside.
