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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
After emancipation and Reconstruction, which brought the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments — abolishing slavery, granting citizenship, and extending voting rights to Black men — a backlash emerged in Jim Crow laws.
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Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 8 Feb. 2025
Soon, an even larger emancipation was taking place along the Mississippi River.
—Scott Spillman, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2025
Exactly what caused the emancipation of A-23A from the current remains unknown.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
This mutual respect continued after emancipation, as Nearest Green became the first master distiller for the Jack Daniel Distillery.
—Ian and Tonya Fitzpatrick, Miami Herald, 29 Jan. 2025
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Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 8 Feb. 2025
Soon, an even larger emancipation was taking place along the Mississippi River.
—Scott Spillman, The New Yorker, 29 Jan. 2025
Exactly what caused the emancipation of A-23A from the current remains unknown.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
This mutual respect continued after emancipation, as Nearest Green became the first master distiller for the Jack Daniel Distillery.
—Ian and Tonya Fitzpatrick, Miami Herald, 29 Jan. 2025
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 16 Feb. 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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