ethnic cleansing

noun

1. the elimination of an unwanted ethnic group or groups from a society, as by genocide or forced emigration.

ethnic cleansing

noun

1. euphemistic,  the violent removal by one ethnic group of other ethnic groups from the population of a particular area: used esp of the activities of Serbs against Croats and Muslims in the former Yugoslavia

ethnic cleansing

1. A euphemism to describe the forceful removal or genocide of minority ethnic groups (see ethnicity) during the breakup of Yugoslavia. It was used mainly to describe the Serbs' attacks on Muslims in Bosnia and Albanians in Kosovo. (See Slobodan Milosevic and Kosovo War.)

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethnic cleansing¹

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

Nothing, he said, could justify their collective punishment, starvation or any form of ethnic cleansing.

From BBC

“This type of garbage about ICE and Border Patrol agents engaging in an ‘ethnic cleansing,’ and racial profiling vilifies our law enforcement.

From Los Angeles Times

But the UN and other international organizations have also documented a systematic RSF policy of ethnic cleansing against non-Arab communities in the territory they conquer.

From BBC

Leading human rights organisations and some countries accuse Israel of ethnic cleansing and acts of genocide.

From BBC

"I think he needs to answer the allegations of war crimes, of ethnic cleansing and of genocide that are being levelled at the government of Israel," he told Times Radio.

From BBC