expel
Americanverb (used with object)
-
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.
- Synonyms:
- excommunicate, exile, dismiss, oust
verb
-
to eject or drive out with force
-
to deprive of participation in or membership of a school, club, etc
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of expel
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English expellen, from Latin expellere “to drive out, drive away,” equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + pellere “to push, drive”
Explanation
Getting expelled from a school is a step beyond suspension. It means that you are asked to leave and never come back. In other words, you have been kicked out. More benignly, expel can mean discharge: if you're having a water-fountain spitting-fight, you are hoping to expel water from your mouth in the direction of your opponent before they can get you. But don't do this; you won't get expelled from school, but the germs in your body will be expelled all over your friends.
Vocabulary lists containing expel
Power Prefix: ex-
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Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 5
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In April 1944, when soldiers pounded on the door late at night to expel her family from their home, Edith put on her favorite dress—blue silk, with a matching suede belt.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
"We're talking about the power to mass expel people who have done nothing wrong to countries that remain unsafe," said Ahilan Arulanantham, a lawyer representing the Syrian TPS holders in the case.
From Barron's • Apr. 29, 2026
The announcement made her the third member of Congress in the last week to resign after allegations of misconduct and a possible vote to expel them from the US House of Representatives.
From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026
Their resignations also preempted a push to expel the representatives.
From Salon • Apr. 21, 2026
Dark seams radiated outwards like a shotgun blast of ink, as if Nico’s body were trying to expel all the shadows he’d travelled through.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
