“persecutions” is a form of
persecution
UK /ˌpɜːsəˈkjuːʃən/ · US /ˌpɝsəˈkjuʃən/ noun
Forms persecutions
- noun The act of persecuting, especially a specific group of people; an instance of persecution. “Many apartheid perpetrators escaped prosecution for their persecution of black Africans and political dissidents.”
Etymology
Equivalent to persecute + -ion. From Middle English persecucioun, from Old French persecucion, from Ecclesiastical Latin persecūtio (“persecution; chase, pursuit”), from Latin persequor (“follow up, pursue”), from per- (“through”) + sequor (“follow”). Displaced native Old English ēhtnes.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The act or practice of persecuting; especially, the infliction of loss, pain, or death for adherence to a particular creed or mode of worship.
- noun The state or condition of being persecuted. Locke.
Etymology [F. persécution, L. persecutio.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “persecution”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details