drum out

verb

1. 1. to expel from a club, association, etc

   2. (formerly) to dismiss from military service to the beat of a drum

Idioms and Phrases

Expel or dismiss publicly and in disgrace, as in They drummed him out of the club. This usage, which alludes to dismissal from a military service to the beat of a drum, began to be applied to civilian expulsions in the mid-1700s.

Example Sentences

Then women were drummed out of the service with nothing more than a few extra coupons to help buy civilian clothes.

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They found that the fish, Danionella cerebrum, drums out a powerful rhythm on an organ called a swim bladder.

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“Whatever is unique or different in my style would probably have been drummed out of me in journalism school on the first day.”

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Studios refused to hire writers named as Communists or fellow travelers, and formerly successful writers such as Dalton Trumbo and Ring Lardner Jr. were drummed out or relegated to writing under fake names.

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Seasoned lawyers have quit over practices they say aim to slant legal work, reward loyalists and drum out dissent.

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Related Words

• demote 
• dethrone 
• dismiss 
• impeach 
• overthrow 
• unseat