deport
Americanverb (used with object)
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to expel (an alien) from a country; banish.
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to send or carry off; transport, especially forcibly.
The country deported its criminals.
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to bear, conduct, or behave (oneself ) in a particular manner.
verb
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to remove (an alien) forcibly from a country; expel
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to carry (an inhabitant) forcibly away from his homeland; transport; exile; banish
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to conduct, hold, or behave (oneself) in a specified manner
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deport
1475–85; < Middle French déporter < Latin dēportāre to carry away, banish oneself, equivalent to dē- de- + portāre to carry; see port 5
Explanation
To deport is to kick someone out of a country. Deporting is also to deliver a person to the authorities of another country. Although you might like to deport your little brother from your room, it’s something governments do. Governments have the power to deport. When you're deported, you get thrown out of a country, often because you were there illegally. This type of deporting is similar to exiling. Another form of deporting is even harsher: sometimes a person is not only tossed out of one country, but handed over to the government of another country. This is also called being extradited, and it usually happens to people wanted for a crime in the second country.
Vocabulary lists containing deport
Maus I: My Father Bleeds History
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Latin Love, Vol I: portare
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Between Shades of Gray
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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.
DHS has been pushing to deport him to various African countries, despite his willingness to self-deport to Costa Rica, where he was promised a form of legal status.
From Slate • May 28, 2026
The Washington Post, citing El Gamal's lawyer, said authorities had subsequently re-arrested them and attempted to deport them, only for federal judges to halt that effort again.
From Barron's • May 7, 2026
The U.S. has greatly expanded its domestic surveillance system, using a high-tech dragnet to locate, track and deport people residing illegally in the country.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026
These include plans to deport refugees and asylum seekers or to house them in central accommodation.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
Through an interpreter, the judge explained that the hearing was about whether he wished to fight the government’s plan to deport him to Mexico as soon as his sentence was finished.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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.
