expel

[ik-spel]

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verb (used with object), ex·pelled, ex·pel·ling.

to drive or force out or away; discharge or eject: to expel air from the lungs; to expel an invader from a country.
to cut off from membership or relations: to expel a student from a college.

Origin of expel

1350–1400; Middle English expellen < Latin expellere to drive out, drive away, equivalent to ex- ex-¹ + pellere to push, drive

Related formsex·pel·la·ble, adjectivere·ex·pel, verb (used with object), re·ex·pelled, re·ex·pel·ling.un·ex·pel·la·ble, adjectiveun·ex·pelled, adjective

Synonyms for expel

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2. oust, dismiss, exile, excommunicate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for expel

dislodge, evacuate, remove, oust, suspend, bar, eject, fire, dismiss, displace, exile, eliminate, discharge, ban, exclude, evict, exhaust, ejaculate, belch, disgorge

Examples from the Web for expel

Contemporary Examples of expel

They wanted to expel the demons which they believed caused impure thoughts.
Beaten By His Church for Being Gay
Justin Jones
December 16, 2014
They expel difficult students and refuse to admit students that public schools have to admit—like kids with disabilities.
Hunger Games Comes to New York State’s Public Schools
Zephyr Teachout
November 26, 2014
Simultaneously, a brigade of mercenaries and Congolese soldiers would seal off the city and expel the guerrillas.
‘Argo’ in the Congo: The Ghosts of the Stanleyville Hostage Crisis
Nina Strochlic
November 23, 2014
After investigating the case and bringing together all of the evidence I moved to expel him from the Senate.
And Now Mitch McConnell Is the ‘Pro-Woman’ Candidate!
Eleanor Clift
October 20, 2014
As an Ebola patient slips from bad to worse to dire, he can expel as many as two and a half gallons of effluvia a day.
Ebola Nurses Are As Brave As Soldiers
Michael Daly
October 17, 2014

Historical Examples of expel

It was imagined that it was necessary to expel it by means of heat or steam.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 447, July 26, 1884
Various
They agreed to expel the followers of Umra Khan from the valley.
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
Sir Winston S. Churchill
Plato does not seriously intend to expel poets from life and society.
The Republic
Plato
The 'beyond' is always coming back upon us however often we expel it.
Sophist
Plato
He also sent orders to Kaumualii to expel Dr. Scheffer, which was done.
The Hawaiian Islands
The Department of Foreign Affairs

British Dictionary definitions for expel

expel

verb -pels, -pelling or -pelled (tr)

to eject or drive out with force
to deprive of participation in or membership of a school, club, etc

Derived Formsexpellable, adjectiveexpellee (ˌɛkspɛˈliː), nounexpeller, noun

Word Origin for expel

C14: from Latin expellere to drive out, from pellere to thrust, drive

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for expel

late 14c., from Latin expellere "drive out," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + pellere "to drive" (see pulse (n.1)). Meaning "to eject from a school" is first recorded 1640s. Related: Expelled; expelling.