暴君用严苛的税收压迫农民，使他们生活在贫困中。

The tyrant oppresses the farmers with heavy taxes, keeping them in poverty.

oppresses 是动词 oppress 的第三人称单数形式。oppress 由前缀 op-（表示"对抗"）和词根 press（压）组成，字面意思是"向下压"，引申为"压迫、压制"。这里指暴君通过重税对农民施加压迫。