expel
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to drive or force out or away; discharge or eject.
to expel air from the lungs; to expel an invader from a country.
-
to cut off from membership or relations.
to expel a student from a college.
- Synonyms:
- excommunicate, exile, dismiss, oust
verb
-
to eject or drive out with force
-
to deprive of participation in or membership of a school, club, etc
Other Word Forms
- expellable adjective
- expellee noun
- expeller noun
- reexpel verb (used with object)
- unexpellable adjective
Etymology
Origin of expel
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English expellen, from Latin expellere “to drive out, drive away,” equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + pellere “to push, drive”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The coral expels the algae that supply its energy and turns white, a condition known as bleaching.
From Science Daily
Most famously, U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos were expelled from the 1968 Mexico City Summer Games for raising their black-gloved fists in protest of racial injustice, though they retained their medals.
The Australian government accused Iran last year of orchestrating a recent wave of antisemitic attacks and expelled Tehran's ambassador.
From Barron's
The Democratic Party's Supreme Council had voted unanimously to expel Kim, a party spokesperson told reporters on Monday.
From BBC
On Tuesday, both twins were said to have been expelled from the courtroom for refusing to stand up.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
