Adjacent Words

Persecute definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PER'SECUTE, v.t. [L. persequor; per and sequor, to pursue. See Seek and Essay.]
1. In a general sense, to pursue in a manner to injure, vex or afflict; to harass with unjust punishment or penalties for supposed offenses; to inflict pain from hatred or malignity.
2. Appropriately, to afflict, harass, or destroy for adherence to a particular creed or system of religious principles, or to a mode of worship. Thus Nero persecuted the Christians by crucifying some, burning others, and condemning others to be worried by dogs. See Acts 22.
3. To harass with solicitations or importunity.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: cause to suffer; "Jews were persecuted in the former Soviet Union" [syn: persecute, oppress]

Merriam Webster's

transitive verb (-cuted; -cuting) Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French persecuter, back-formation from persecuteur persecutor, from Late Latin persecutor, from persequi to persecute, from Latin, to pursue, from per- through + sequi to follow — more at sue Date: 15th century 1. to harass or punish in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict; specifically to cause to suffer because of belief 2. to annoy with persistent or urgent approaches (as attacks, pleas, or importunities) ; pester Synonyms: see wrong • persecutee noun • persecutive adjective • persecutor noun • persecutory adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 subject (a person etc.) to hostility or ill-treatment, esp. on the grounds of political or religious belief. 2 harass; worry. 3 (often foll. by with) bombard (a person) with questions etc. Derivatives: persecutor n. persecutory adj. Etymology: ME f. OF persecuter back-form. f. persecuteur persecutor f. LL persecutor f. L persequi (as PER-, sequi secut- follow, pursue)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Persecute Per"se*cute, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Persecuted; p. pr. & vb. n. Persecuting.] [F. pers['e]cueter, L. persequi, persecutus, to pursue, prosecute; per + sequi to follow, pursue. See Per-, and Second.] 1. To pursue in a manner to injure, grieve, or afflict; to beset with cruelty or malignity; to harass; especially, to afflict, harass, punish, or put to death, for adherence to a particular religious creed or mode of worship. Do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. --Matt. v. 44. 2. To harass with importunity; to pursue with persistent solicitations; to annoy. --Johnson. Syn: To oppress; harass; distress; worry; annoy.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(persecutes, persecuting, persecuted) 1. If someone is persecuted, they are treated cruelly and unfairly, often because of their race or beliefs. Mr Weaver and his family have been persecuted by the authorities for their beliefs... They began by brutally persecuting the Catholic Church. ...a persecuted minority. VERB: be V-ed, V n, V-ed 2. If you say that someone is persecuting you, you mean that they are deliberately making your life difficult. He said his first wife persecuted him with her unreasonable demands... VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. 1. Oppress, harass, afflict, molest, distress, worry, hunt down, run down, pursue malignantly, drive from pillar to post, injure persistently. 2. Harass, solicit, importune, annoy, tease, worry, pester.

Moby Thesaurus

abuse, afflict, aggravate, aggrieve, annoy, badger, bait, be at, bedevil, befoul, beset, bewitch, blight, bother, bristle, brown off, bug, bully, bullyrag, burn up, chivy, condemn, corrupt, crucify, curse, damage, defile, deprave, despoil, destroy, devil, disadvantage, discompose, disserve, distemper, distress, disturb, do a mischief, do evil, do ill, do wrong, do wrong by, dog, doom, dragoon, envenom, exasperate, exercise, fash, fret, get, get into trouble, gripe, harass, harm, harry, haunt, heckle, hector, hex, hound, hunt, hurt, ill-treat, impair, importune, infect, injure, irk, irritate, jinx, maltreat, martyr, menace, miff, mistreat, molest, nag, needle, nettle, nudzh, oppress, outrage, peeve, pester, pick on, pique, plague, play havoc with, play hob with, pluck the beard, poison, pollute, pother, prejudice, provoke, punish, pursue, rack, ride, rile, roil, ruffle, savage, scathe, subjugate, suppress, taint, tease, threaten, torment, torture, trouble, try the patience, tweak the nose, tyrannize, vex, victimize, violate, worry, wound, wreak havoc on, wrong