banishment

American

[ban-ish-muhnt] / ˈbæn ɪʃ mənt /

noun

expulsion from a country, place, or position by authoritative decree, or the state of having been expelled.

A royal proclamation ordered the banishment of all priests from the city.
The team’s wide receiver flunked another drug test and will now be subject to a one-year banishment, according to league sources.
the act of driving away, or the state of having been sent away or driven out.

We strive for the preservation of peace and the banishment of tyranny and slavery from the earth.
The decades after World War II were marked not by disarmament and the banishment of war but by ceaseless confrontation and the division of the world into hostile blocs.

Other Word Forms

nonbanishment noun
probanishment noun
self-banishment noun

Etymology

Origin of banishment

banish ( def. ) + -ment ( def. )

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.

Let’s say you were ordered deported and you now faced banishment from your country.

From Slate • Feb. 17, 2026

Part hobo, part insult comic, part performance artist, Diogenes flaunted his disregard for convention in ways that scandalized the bourgeoisie of Athens and, later, Corinth, after his banishment from Sinope became permanent.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

After his banishment, the 27-year-old revealed that he had always been a faithful.

From BBC • Oct. 15, 2025

He eventually brokered a settlement, allowing Rose to voluntarily accept banishment for life in return for no further punishment.

From Salon • Jun. 13, 2025

And Cade frequently wasn't doing anything to justify his banishment.

From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023