Originally ‘genocide’ did not refer to literal massacres, but actions that inhibited nationalism, hence why some people now say ‘cultural genocide’ to clarify that they are not referring to violence. To further complicate matters, sometimes the ethnic aspect is overlooked completely, and it becomes a crude synonym for ‘mass killing’. It’s an ambiguous term with a great deal of emotional baggage, which is why anticommunists like overusing it so much.

I know that some indigenous groups recommend using the term, but in the mainstream ‘genocide’ is used very selectively and rarely in reference to the people that the Anglosphere oppressed, so I still prefer using other terminology.