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ostracism

American  
[os-truh-siz-uhm] / ˈɒs trəˌsɪz əm /

noun

  1. exclusion, by general consent, from social acceptance, privileges, friendship, etc.

  2. (in ancient Greece) temporary banishment of a citizen, decided upon by popular vote.

Etymology

Origin of ostracism

1570–80; < New Latin ostracismus < Greek ostrakismós banishment, equivalent to ostrak ( ízein ) to ostracize + -ismos -ism

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.