peasant
UK[ˈpeznt]US[ˈpeznt]
n
a poor farmer of low social status who owns or rents a small piece of land for cultivation.
n
(informal, disapproving) a person who is rude, uneducated, or has unsophisticated tastes.
Etymology
the word "peasant" has a journey rooted in the land. it entered middle english around the 15th century from anglo-norman paisant and old french paisent, meaning "country dweller." these, in turn, derive from the latin pagus, referring to a rural district or village. the semantic logic flows directly from "inhabitant of a rural district" to the specific modern sense of a small-scale agricultural laborer. over time, the term acquired connotations of low social and economic status, and later, through metaphorical extension, came to describe someone perceived as uncultured.
Analysis
the word is a simplex loanword. it entered english as a single unit from anglo-norman and old french, derived ultimately from latin. its core components are not productively separable in modern english spelling.
Examples
the medieval peasant worked the lord's land for three days a week.
he was criticized for his peasant manners at the formal dinner.
most of the country's population were landless peasants.