ya.nah denotes oppressive or wrongful treatment of people, and can identify an oppressing person or power.

The attested use centers on harmful or wrongful treatment of others: the Hiphil forms occur in prohibitions against mistreating a sojourner, neighbor, orphan, widow, poor person, or the people, while participial forms can designate an oppressing person, sword, or city. A few occurrences are less clear in the translation, but the supplied gloss and the broader set of explicit clauses support this single range.

1. Mistreating people through oppressive wrongdoing · dominant

   The Hiphil forms describe conduct forbidden toward vulnerable people and neighbors: in Leviticus 19:33 the APB renders the clause "you shall not oppress him" concerning a sojourner, and in Jeremiah 22:3 it forbids such treatment of the sojourner, orphan, and widow. In Ezekiel 22:29 the plural perfect stands in a list where the APB says that the people "have oppressed the poor and needy," while Ezekiel 46:18 uses an infinitive construct for depriving people of their possession. Participial forms also identify the source of such harm: in Jeremiah 46:16 the APB speaks of "the sword of the oppressor," and in Zephaniah 3:1 it calls the city "the oppressive one."

   Leviticus 19:33Jeremiah 22:3Ezekiel 22:29Ezekiel 46:18Jeremiah 46:16Zephaniah 3:1

In the Anselm Project Bible: Across the supplied verses, the APB commonly uses "oppress" or "oppressive," while also uses "wrong" in a prohibition between neighbors and refers to an "oppressor" or "oppressing sword." These are presentations of the surrounding clauses rather than fixed English equivalents.