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# peasant

noun (a peasant, peasants); adjective (peasant farmers)

«peasant» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A peasant was a poor farmer or farm worker in the past, especially in the Middle Ages, who worked a small piece of land and often had to give part of the crops to a lord. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#m1)
2. In some countries today, peasant means a farmer on a small farm who grows food mostly for the family. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#m2)
3. (rude, insult) Calling someone a peasant means they are uneducated or have bad manners; it is unkind. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#m3)

### In the lessons

In history lessons peasants appear in the feudal system: king, barons, knights, peasants (also called serfs or villeins); they lived in small houses with animals, paid taxes, and in the Peasants' Revolt they rose up against unfair taxes. In fairy tales, a clever peasant often tricks a king. In playground talk, «peasant» is used as a snobby insult — not kind. Phrases: «the Peasants' Revolt», «peasant farmers», «peasant life».

### Examples

- Most people in medieval England were peasants. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x1)
- The peasants worked in the lord's fields for three days a week. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x2)
- In the Peasants' Revolt, peasants marched on London. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x3)
- The peasant's cottage had one room shared with a cow. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x4)
- In the fairy tale, a poor peasant married the princess. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x5)
- «You peasant!» he said — which was very rude. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x6)
- Peasant farmers in many countries still grow their own food. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x7)
- "I've no money," said the peasant. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/#x8)

### Note

Plural «peasants». Spelling: peas-ant, but not related to peas. Trap: «pheasant» (with ph) is a bird; «pleasant» (with l) means nice. In history, a «serf» was a peasant who was not free to leave the land.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «peasant» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/peasant/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«peasant» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/peasant.html) on Mova free.