verb
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to force out of a position or place; supplant or expel
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property law to deprive (a person) of the possession of land
Etymology
Origin of oust
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Anglo-French ouster “to remove,” Old French oster, from Latin obstāre “to stand in the way, oppose” ( ob- ob- + stāre “to stand ”)
Explanation
A teacher may oust you from class if you are being disruptive, or you might oust your class president from her position if you beat her in the election. To oust is to “expel,” “kick out,” or “remove and replace.” When you oust someone, you are “giving them the boot.” A sports team is ousted from a tournament if they lose an elimination round. Oust often implies both removal and replacement. The automobile, for instance, ousted the horse as the preferred means of travel. Likewise, when a politician ousts someone from office they are taking that person’s place in office. And if you beat the all-time record in a hot-dog eating tournament, then you oust the previous record holder from their position.
Vocabulary lists containing oust
A Long Way Gone
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100 SAT words Beginning with "O"
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This Week in Words: November 10 - 16, 2018
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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.
His playbook: Oust the trusts’ boards, change their strategies and make money by closing their discounts.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026
Appeared in the April 13, 2026, print edition as 'Hungarians Oust Viktor Orbán'.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
Oust Joseph Stalin, set up a bona fide democracy.
From Time Magazine Archive
Their car may be finished with Lucite, their furniture lacquered with Duco, their house color-coated and waterproofed with Tedlar, their crab grass killed with Oust.
From Time Magazine Archive
A canal about thirty miles long would connect the Ket with the Yenesei, whence it was proposed to follow the Angara, Lake Baikal, and the Selenga to Oust Kiachta.
From Overland through Asia; Pictures of Siberian, Chinese, and Tartar Life by Knox, Thomas Wallace
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.
