defenestration

noun de·fen·es·tra·tion \ (ˌ)dē-ˌfe-nə-ˈstrā-shən \

Updated on: 17 Apr 2018

Definition of defenestration

1 : a throwing of a person or thing out of a window

assassination by defenestration

2 : a usually swift dismissal or expulsion (as from a political party or office)

the defenestration of political leaders

the mass defenestration of middle management
—Jane Bryant Quinn

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defenestrate

play \(ˌ)dē-ˈfe-nə-ˌstrāt\ transitive verb

Recent Examples of defenestration from the Web

Still, several investors complained about the manner of Mr Cryan’s defenestration, which could make for a turbulent annual shareholders’ meeting next month.

— The Economist, "Business this week," 12 Apr. 2018
McCabe’s testimony will not be altered by his sudden defenestration at the FBI.

— andrew cohen, Esquire, "What Happens Now That McCabe Is Fired? Consider These Five Things.," 19 Mar. 2018
Donald Trump sacked Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, announcing the defenestration on Twitter.

— The Economist, "Politics this week," 15 Mar. 2018
Whichever account suits your taste, none points to a cold-blooded defenestration.

— gregory krieg, CNN, "Trump's new tagline: 'You were fired! A few hours ago'," 13 Mar. 2018
Nearly overshadowed by these developments was the budget's defenestration of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which Trump has made a top policy goal.

— david lazarus, latimes.com, "Under Trump, consumer agency promises to do the bare minimum, and nothing more," 20 Feb. 2018
People saw how quickly NBC News acted, at a great cost to the network, and insiders seem to be taking leadership at its word that the transgressions leading to Lauer’s defenestration were previously unknown at the highest levels of the organization.

— joe pompeo, The Hive, "Lauer’s “Double Life”: Inside NBC, the Network Is Trying to Expunge the Lauer Era," 7 Dec. 2017
The figurative defenestration of public figures such as Prince Alwaleed bin Talal could be a sign that the crown prince is sending a message to potential rivals to the throne.

— krishnadev calamur, The Atlantic, "Saudi Arabia's Very Public, Very Risky Palace Intrigue," 5 Nov. 2017
Nobody knows if any of these charges will stick or if Republicans will now be able to engineer the defenestration of Robert Mueller.

— william cummings, USA TODAY, "The Bubble: Right is 'desperately trying to shift blame to Clinton,' liberals say," 28 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'defenestration.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

These days defenestration is often used to describe the forceful removal of someone from public office or from some other advantageous position. History’s most famous defenestration, however, was one in which the tossing out the window was quite literal. On May 23, 1618, two imperial regents were found guilty of violating certain guarantees of religious freedom. As punishment, they were thrown out the window of Prague Castle. The men survived the 50-foot tumble into the moat, but the incident, which became known as the Defenestration of Prague, marked the beginning of the Bohemian resistance to Hapsburg rule that eventually led to the Thirty Years' War.