After sending out dozens of job applications, he finally received an interview invitation, but it was preceded by several polite rejections.

rejections 是名词 rejection 的复数形式，来自动词 reject（拒绝）。reject 由前缀 re-（表示"回"）和词根 -ject（表示"投掷"）组成，字面意思是"扔回去"，引申为"拒绝"。 rejection 指"拒绝的行为或结果"，在求职语境中特指"拒绝录用通知"。polite rejections 指"礼貌的拒绝信"，通常是用委婉措辞告知求职者未被录用的通知。