Persecute

//ˈpɝsəkjut// verb

verb ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To pursue in a manner to do harm or cruelty to; especially, because of the victim's race, sexual identity, or adherence to a particular belief.

    "He who persecutes one will persecute all."

  2. 2
    cause to suffer wordnet
  3. 3
    To harass with importunity; to pursue with persistent solicitations; to annoy.
  4. 4
    To kill many of one species of animal, with the intent of removing them from human habitats.

    "Humans have been persecuting wolves in this forest for centuries."

Synonyms

All synonyms
oppressoppressabuseafflictaggravateaggrieve

Antonyms

All antonyms
please

Example

More examples

"In France, we leave alone those who start fires, but we persecute those who sound the alarm."

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French persécuter, from Ecclesiastical Latin persecutor, from Latin persequor, persecutus (“follow up, pursue”), from per- (“through”) + sequor (“follow”) (English sequel). Compare prosecute. Cf. also pursue.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.