persecutory

adjective

as in frightening

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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 persecutory For example, Americans living during World War II developed persecutory delusions involving Germans, while those living during the Cold War focused on communists. — Alaina Vandervoort Burns, The Conversation, 17 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for persecutory
  1. frightening
  2. harassing
  3. fearful
  4. terrifying
  5. chilling
  6. scary
  7. alarming
  8. horrible
Adjective
  • As the frightening phantom of Frank the Bunny warns, this parallel reality has a ticking clock that’ll result in its imminent collapse in just 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes, and 12 seconds.
    — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 26 Oct. 2026
  • For neighbors, the crash brought a frightening interruption to an otherwise routine afternoon.
    — Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of frightening
Adjective
  • Then Clark put on a dribbling clinic, made nifty pass after nifty pass and became both a harassing presence on defense and the Fever's emotional leader during a 20-6 second-quarter run.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The first complaint, in which a clerk made similar accusations of abusive and harassing conduct, was filed with the circuit court in 2022, not long after Merriam’s appointment.
    — Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 1 Jan. 2026
Definition of harassing
Adjective
  • They are fed up with the world's rebuke over the Gaza war, but also fearful of their growing global isolation.
    — Daniel Estrin, NPR, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Mark Hackett, the chief market strategist for Nationwide’s Investment Management Group, told Fortune that younger investors aren’t necessarily more fearful than older generations.
    — Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of fearful
Adjective
  • What started as a routine bike ride home turned into a terrifying fight for survival for Katherine Marroquin on Sunday night.
    — Naveen Dhaliwal, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • In Carroll Gardens, says Cavallo, a house on Henry Street, between Carroll and President, is so terrifying some kids have to cross the street.
    — Fiorella Valdesolo, Curbed, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of terrifying
Adjective
  • The chilling effect, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, is a phenomenon in which individuals refrain from engaging in expression for fear of getting into trouble.
    — Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Sectarian tensions and the disrupting force of the Cold War plunged the Middle Eastern nation into decades of armed conflict, with a chilling effect on daily life.
    — Shy Clara Thompson, Pitchfork, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of chilling
Adjective
  • Bad dreams – like scary stories – work as fire drills for the developing brain.
    — Liz Rosenberg, The Conversation, 23 Oct. 2026
  • There, shortly after fully participating in a practice as if nothing ever happened, the rookie linebacker recapped the scenes from perhaps the scariest moment of his football career three days prior.
    — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of scary
Adjective
  • The Houthis in Yemen, whom the kingdom has been battling on and off since 2009, have demonstrated an alarming ability to strike deep inside Saudi Arabia, from airports to the Aramco head office, with no regard for civilian lives.
    — Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • This is especially alarming as 1 in 8 women in America will develop breast cancer.
    — Lyndon Haviland, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of alarming
Adjective
  • In most versions of the Greek mythology, Medusa is a beautiful woman that was cursed by the goddess Athena with a head of snakes instead of hair and the horrible ability to turn people to stone with just one look.
    — Lynsey Eidell, Glamour, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The battle is between that horrible atmosphere and some of the horrific candidates that have been nominated by the Democratic Party.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of horrible

Browse Nearby Words

persecutors
persecutory
perseverance
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Cite this Entry

“Persecutory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/persecutory. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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