Tribulation is suffering or trouble, usually resulting from oppression. The tribulations of a coal miner include a dangerous work environment, lung disease from black dust and a cramped, dark work space.
When you encounter the word tribulation, it will usually be in the company of the word trial as in, “She suffered many trials and tribulations as an early feminist.” The two words, while not identical, emphasize each other as they essentially mean testing and suffering. Tribulation comes from the Latin verb tribulare "to oppress, afflict."
