1
as in tormenters
a person who causes repeated emotional pain, distress, or annoyance to another
years later his schoolyard persecutor would end up being one of his low-paid employees
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in nuisances
one who is obnoxiously annoying
on this flight my airline-appointed persecutor was a chattering nitwit who could not stop talking about himself
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of persecutors
That is a nasty process which involves digging up Ambar’s still-fresh corpse, then subjecting it to various grisly indignities night after night as retribution gets visited upon our heroine’s persecutors.
—
Dennis Harvey, Variety, 6 Aug. 2025
Using it to describe this week’s attack on Huwara – or other similar attacks in Israel or Palestine – effectively puts Israel in the place of the Jews’ historic persecutors.
—Joshua Shanes, The Conversation, 6 Mar. 2023
Dennis Harvey, Variety, 6 Aug. 2025
Using it to describe this week’s attack on Huwara – or other similar attacks in Israel or Palestine – effectively puts Israel in the place of the Jews’ historic persecutors.
—Joshua Shanes, The Conversation, 6 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for persecutors
Noun
-
Decades ago, marshes were considered nuisances, soggy flats to be drained, dried, and made waterproof with liberal coatings of asphalt.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
For decades, generals, coup-plotters, and torturers walked free under the shield of amnesty laws passed after the country’s 21-year dictatorship.—
Julia Vargas Jones,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Each regime, from the Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic, claimed to uphold human rights and castigated its predecessors as torturers, only to ratchet up the incarceration of political opponents.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
The mind could wander briefly about the Giants riding a two-game winning streak into a Thursday Night Football matchup with the Eagles, equipped to knock off their tormentors who suddenly look vulnerable.—
Dan Duggan,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
-
There appears to be no limit to his sensitivity or his determination to humble his tormentors.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Outer openings not protected against entry of pests (back door open).—
Gege Reed,
Louisville Courier Journal,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Boxelder bugs are North American pests that look similar to beetles—but aren’t.—
Nafeesah Allen,
Better Homes & Gardens,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
But that conspiracy tends to manifest in the form of universal contemporary annoyances.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
9 Oct. 2025
-
One of my long-standing annoyances with macOS was the lack of control over the menu bar.—
Edward Mendelson,
PC Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Season one may only be six episodes, but it’s padded out with meandering subplots, vague teases for a second-season mystery, and one overly long and slow-motion-dependent scene at a nightclub.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
25 Oct. 2025
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In the interview below, Hartley breaks down the Season 3 premiere and teases what’s in store for the remainder of the season.—
Katie Campione,
Deadline,
19 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Christopher was badly beaten by the two men, later identified as Berry and Thomas, but was able to fend off the attackers, who subsequently fled the scene.—
Liam Quinn,
PEOPLE,
21 Oct. 2025
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Reports suggest the attackers attempted to use this access to demand a ransom from Discord.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Persecutors.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/persecutors. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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