persecution
noun
per·se·cu·tion
ˌpər-si-ˈkyü-shən 
1
: the act or practice of persecuting especially those who differ in origin, religion, or social outlook
2
: the condition of being persecuted, harassed, or annoyed
Examples of persecution in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
He was granted a withholding of removal, a legal status, in 2019 that prevented the government from deporting him back to his home country of El Salvador because of a risk of persecution by local gangs.
—
Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 7 May 2025
Under Francis, the Vatican in 2018 inked a controversial agreement with Beijing governing the appointment of bishops, which many conservatives decried as a sellout of the underground Chinese Catholics who had remained loyal to Rome during decades of communist persecution.
—Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2025
The Charlotte Observer reported in March on people from Afghanistan who were close to coming to Charlotte, fleeing persecution, through the program before Trump halted it.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 5 May 2025
Eighty years since the end of World War II, Amsterdam’s mayor apologized for the city’s role in the persecution of its Jewish residents during the Holocaust, in a rare acknowledgment of a collective moral failure by a city leader.
—Victoria Kim, New York Times, 4 May 2025
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Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 7 May 2025
Under Francis, the Vatican in 2018 inked a controversial agreement with Beijing governing the appointment of bishops, which many conservatives decried as a sellout of the underground Chinese Catholics who had remained loyal to Rome during decades of communist persecution.
—Nicole Winfield, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2025
The Charlotte Observer reported in March on people from Afghanistan who were close to coming to Charlotte, fleeing persecution, through the program before Trump halted it.
—Ryan Oehrli, Charlotte Observer, 5 May 2025
Eighty years since the end of World War II, Amsterdam’s mayor apologized for the city’s role in the persecution of its Jewish residents during the Holocaust, in a rare acknowledgment of a collective moral failure by a city leader.
—Victoria Kim, New York Times, 4 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for persecution
Cite this Entry
“Persecution.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/persecution. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
persecution
noun
per·se·cu·tion
ˌpər-si-ˈkyü-shən
1
: the act or practice of persecuting
2
: the condition of being persecuted
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