exile

American  

[eg-zahyl, ek-sahyl] / ˈɛg zaɪl, ˈɛk saɪl /

noun

1. expulsion from one's native land by authoritative decree.

2. the fact or state of expulsion from one's native land by authoritative decree.

   She had to live in exile.

3. a person banished from their native land.

4. prolonged separation from one's country or home, such as by force of circumstances.

   Many will suffer wartime exile.

5. anyone separated from their country or home voluntarily or by force of circumstances.

6. the Exile, the Babylonian captivity of the Jews, 597–538 b.c.

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verb (used with object)

exiled, exiling

1. to expel or banish (a person) from their country; expatriate.

   Synonyms:

   deport, eject, evict

2. to separate from country, home, etc..

   Disagreements exiled him from his family.

   Synonyms:

   deport, eject, evict

exile ¹ British  

/ ˈɛksaɪl, ɛɡˈzɪlɪk, ɛkˈsɪlɪk, ˈɛɡzaɪl /

noun

1. a prolonged, usually enforced absence from one's home or country; banishment

2. the expulsion of a person from his native land by official decree

3. a person banished or living away from his home or country; expatriate

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verb

1. to expel from home or country, esp by official decree as a punishment; banish

Exile ² British  

/ ˈɛɡzaɪl, ˈɛksaɪl /

noun

1. another name for Babylonian captivity

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Other Word Forms

• exilable adjective
• exiler noun
• exilic adjective
• quasi-exiled adjective
• unexiled adjective

Etymology

Origin of exile

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English exil “banishment,” from Latin ex(s)ilium, equivalent to exsul “banished person” + -ium -ium

Example Sentences

But she may have to compete with Cuba, whose deputy prime minister Óscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga last week made the same pitch to Cuban exiles in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal

In a bid to relieve economic pressure -- and meet US demands -- a senior economic official in Cuba announced Monday that Cuban exiles would now be able to invest and own businesses there.

From Barron's

From the first days of his rule, the Fidel Castro referred to Cubans who went into exile as “gusanos,” Spanish for worms.

From The Wall Street Journal

Cuban exiles have demanded multiparty elections, freedom of speech, the release of political prisoners and other reforms.

From Los Angeles Times

But 15 years later, Ikbal -- then 57 and a member of an exiled Iranian Kurdish armed group -- was killed near the Iraqi-Iranian border.

From Barron's

Related Words

• banish
• displace
• drive out
• evacuate
• expel
• extradite
• ostracize
• oust
• outlaw
• relegate