Final answer:
A convict servant is an indentured servant with a criminal record, sentenced to servitude instead of prison time. Life for indentured servants was harsh, but it offered a path for poor Englishmen and women to new opportunities in America.
Step-by-step explanation:
A convict servant is best described as an indentured servant with a criminal record. This term refers to individuals who were sentenced to servitude often in lieu of a prison term. There is a nuanced difference between indentured servants, who were individuals that entered into a contract for a specified period of work in exchange for passage to the colonies, room and board, and eventually, 'freedom dues' that sometimes included land. Convict servants, on the other hand, worked as part of a punishment for their crimes and were bound by similar terms of servitude.
Life as an indentured servant in the colonies, specifically in places like Virginia, was incredibly harsh. They were subject to the will of their contract holders who could either sell or trade them like property. Despite these hardships, indentured servitude provided a pathway for many poor Englishmen and women to seek new opportunities in the American colonies.