exorcise

or ex·or·cize

[ek-sawr-sahyz, -ser-]

See more synonyms for exorcise on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), ex·or·cised, ex·or·cis·ing.

to seek to expel (an evil spirit) by adjuration or religious or solemn ceremonies: to exorcise a demon.
to free (a person, place, etc.) of evil spirits or malignant influences.

Origin of exorcise

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin exorcizāre < Greek exorkízein, equivalent to ex- ex-³ + (h)orkízein to cause (someone) to swear an oath

Related formsex·or·cise·ment, nounex·or·cis·er, nounun·ex·or·cised, adjective

Can be confusedexercise exorcise (see synonym study at exercise)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for exorcise

purge, dismiss, purify, remove, expel

Examples from the Web for exorcise

Contemporary Examples of exorcise

In the God-fearing, heavily Baptist town of West Memphis, devil worshiping became a scourge to exorcise.
‘Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory’: Its Road to the Academy Awards
Lorenza Muñoz
February 22, 2012
Does it merely take a united family leveling threats all at once to exorcise some of the demonic powers of addiction?
The Rehab Show That Works
Natasha Vargas-Cooper
July 21, 2010
He's certainly done a lot to exorcise the whole Reagan era, and this is him at his best.
Grade: Incomplete
Sean Wilentz
April 28, 2009

Historical Examples of exorcise

The demon replied, "It is not customary to exorcise in that tongue."
The Phantom World
Augustin Calmet
Some monks of the abbey were requested to come also and exorcise the spirit.
The Phantom World
Augustin Calmet
There is nothing like beef and beer to exorcise evil spirits.
Victor's Triumph
Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth
They exorcise the Sudhiniyas or the drinkers of human blood.
The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India
R. V. Russell
A man riding on the mare entered the Church with a friend, to exorcise the Spirit.
Welsh Folk-Lore
Elias Owen

Word Origin and History for exorcise

c.1400, "to invoke spirits," from Old French exorciser (14c.), from Late Latin exorcizare, from Greek exorkizein "banish an evil spirit; bind by oath" (see exorcism).

Sense of "calling up evil spirits to drive them out" became dominant 16c. A rare case where -ise trumps -ize on both sides of the Atlantic, perhaps by influence of exercise. Related: Exorcised; exorcising.