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The Emancipation Proclamation, issued by Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, ordered that enslaved people living in rebellious territories be released from the bonds of ownership and made free people—their own masters. Though the proclamation's initial impact was limited, the order was true to the etymology of emancipation, which comes from a Latin word combining the prefix e-, meaning "away," and mancipare, meaning "to transfer ownership of.”
Examples of emancipation in a Sentence
a book discussing the role that the emancipation of slaves played in the nation's history
Recent Examples on the Web
The show is organized around themes including sensuality, spirituality, joy, revelry and emancipation.
—
Emily Labarge, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2025
For Augustus and others, being paid to be exploited was not emancipation.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
Among others, two excellent exhibits cover the local coal industry and the cotton boom, which includes a map of the county's freedom colonies, with background about slavery and emancipation.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 19 Dec. 2024
Gerber started the Society for Human Rights (SHR) after experiencing the German homosexual emancipation movement while stationed there for the U.S. Army.
—Carrie Shepherd, Axios, 9 Dec. 2024
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Emily Labarge, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2025
For Augustus and others, being paid to be exploited was not emancipation.
—Nyya Toussaint / Made By History, TIME, 31 Dec. 2024
Among others, two excellent exhibits cover the local coal industry and the cotton boom, which includes a map of the county's freedom colonies, with background about slavery and emancipation.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 19 Dec. 2024
Gerber started the Society for Human Rights (SHR) after experiencing the German homosexual emancipation movement while stationed there for the U.S. Army.
—Carrie Shepherd, Axios, 9 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for emancipation
Dictionary Entries Near emancipation
Cite this Entry
“Emancipation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emancipation. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
emancipation
noun
eman·ci·pa·tion
i-ˌman(t)-sə-ˈpā-shən 
: gradual separation of an original homogeneous embryo into fields with different specific potentialities for development
Legal Definition
emancipation
noun
eman·ci·pa·tion
i-ˌman-sə-ˈpā-shən
: the act or process of emancipating
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