ostracize
[os-truh-sahyz]
- to exclude, by general consent, from society, friendship, conversation, privileges, etc.: His friends ostracized him after his father's arrest.
- to banish (a person) from his or her native country; expatriate.
- (in ancient Greece) to banish (a citizen) temporarily by popular vote.
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Also especially British, os·tra·cise.
Origin of ostracize
Synonyms
See more synonyms for ostracize on Thesaurus.com1. shun, snub, blacklist.
Antonyms
1. accept.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for ostracization
Contemporary Examples
What can this tell us about the history of disability and ostracization?
My family suffers from the ostracization I experienced until this very day.
Historical Examples
She was also too heavily conditioned to graduate, and she hated college since her ostracization by the Sans.
Marjorie Dean College JuniorPauline Lester
ostracize
ostracise
- to exclude or banish (a person) from a particular group, society, etc
- (in ancient Greece) to punish by temporary exile
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Word Origin
C17: from Greek ostrakizein to select someone for banishment by voting on potsherds; see ostracon
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for ostracization
ostracize
v.
1640s, from Greek ostrakizein "to banish," literally "to banish by voting with potshards" (see ostracism). Figurative sense of "to exclude from society" is attested from 1640s. Related: Ostracization; ostracized; ostracizing.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper