persecute

verb

ˈpər-si-ˌkyüt How to pronounce persecute (audio)
Definition of persecutenext
1
as in to plague
to cause persistent suffering to people who were persecuted simply for practicing their religious faith

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to annoy
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts she likes to persecute her sister with pointless, annoying questions at very inopportune times

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb persecute differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of persecute are aggrieve, oppress, and wrong. While all these words mean "to injure unjustly or outrageously," persecute implies a relentless and unremitting subjection to annoyance or suffering.

a child persecuted by constant criticism

When is aggrieve a more appropriate choice than persecute?

Although the words aggrieve and persecute have much in common, aggrieve implies suffering caused by an infringement or denial of rights.

a legal aid society representing aggrieved minority groups

When might oppress be a better fit than persecute?

The meanings of oppress and persecute largely overlap; however, oppress suggests inhumane imposing of burdens one cannot endure or exacting more than one can perform.

a people oppressed by a warmongering tyrant

When could wrong be used to replace persecute?

The synonyms wrong and persecute are sometimes interchangeable, but wrong implies inflicting injury either unmerited or out of proportion to what one deserves.

a penal system that had wronged him

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of persecute More generally, the movie, directed by Elegance Bratton, is about the historical context of this murder, the conscious and organized effort by white Southern citizens and officials to intimidate, persecute, and subjugate Black people. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026 Many see Trump as the only president to defend Nigerian Christians; his administration claims they are being persecuted by Islamist groups. — Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 4 Sep. 2026 Fernanda risked her life not only to protect works of art during the war, but also to help politically persecuted people escape the Fascist regime. — Roberto Prieto, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026 García Luna pledged to restore independence and public confidence in the Public Ministry and began reviewing cases involving officials, journalists, and others who alleged that they had been politically persecuted under the previous administration. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for persecute
Recent Examples of Synonyms for persecute
  1. plague
  2. annoy
  3. afflict
  4. bother
  5. torture
  6. irritate
  7. besiege
  8. bug
Verb
  • Speculation and conspiracy theories have plagued Kirk’s death, fueled even by public figures such as Candace Owens, a longtime friend of Kirk, who has been outspoken about her belief that his death was orchestrated in an elaborate plot.
    — Mackenzie Chase, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Hoover’s replacement has thus far been a miss, and the problem that plagued this program in losses in each of the last two years has not changed.
    — Mac Engel October 14, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of plague
Verb
  • Returning the sarcasm tends to cause the same problem, with two people annoyed instead of one.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Williams is annoyed and wants order while Kirke is hardly paying attention and lugs vases of flowers through her home.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of annoy
Verb
  • Love contains the seeds of its own destruction—the cruelty and self-absorption that turns the afflicted against one another, and themselves.
    — Merve Emre, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Engineers have also taken steps to ensure that a CFT-like thruster anomaly doesn't afflict future Starliner flights.
    — Mike Wall, Space.com, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of afflict
Verb
  • Gee, who used to pop into fraternity parties unannounced to keep tabs on them, said he is not bothered by the reintegration of the three formerly rogue organizations.
    — Brittany Shammas, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
  • This is a dense picture—there’s almost too much to unpack, if you can be bothered to care about any of it.
    — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of bother
Verb
  • Hundreds of thousands of women were tried, tortured, and executed for witchcraft in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
  • According to Bilal and his brother Judy, neither Ahmed nor anyone else in his family had ever been arrested or tortured by the regime.
    — Ben Taub, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of torture
Verb
  • Some develop in varicose veins; others form where a needle or IV has irritated a vein.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
  • So testing a movie that temporarily sounds irritating is really, really hard.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of irritate
Verb
  • Mehra – director of 2016 pic Baar Baar Dekho and creator of Prime Video series Big Girls Don’t Cry – says that while Indian audiences are besieged by films and TV content right now, where Hunkkaar has cut through is in its subject matter.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Its largest medical center, Al-Shifa Hospital, was besieged, bombed, and raided, under false pretexts, resulting in hundreds of deaths inside.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of besiege
Verb
  • And as the team moved into the couple’s guest house on their San Diego rental property, the filmmakers feared that the home was bugged and ordered a device to try to de-bug it, without success.
    — Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 7 Oct. 2026
  • He’s bugged Jay — the two met online and married two years ago before opening their first restaurant last year — to make sure that includes his crispy duck panang curry.
    — Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of bug

Browse Nearby Words

perquisites
persecute
persecuted
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Persecute.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/persecute. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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