deport

verb

de·​port di-ˈpȯrt 

dē-

deported; deporting; deports

transitive verb

1

[Latin deportare]

a

: to send (a foreign-born noncitizen) out of the country by legal order : to subject to deportation

b

: to remove (someone or something) : displace

… over two hundred miners … were forcibly deported from their homes …

—Zechariah Chafee

2

: to behave or comport (oneself) especially in accord with a code

Synonyms of deport

• exile
• banish
• relegate
• evict

Choose the Right Synonym for deport

banish, exile, deport, transport mean to remove by authority from a state or country.

banish implies compulsory removal from a country not necessarily one's own.

banished for seditious activities

exile may imply compulsory removal or an enforced or voluntary absence from one's own country.

a writer who exiled himself for political reasons

deport implies sending out of the country a noncitizen who has illegally entered or whose presence is judged adverse to the public welfare.

migrants may be deported

transport implies sending a convicted criminal to an overseas penal colony.

a convict who was transported to Australia

behave, conduct, deport, comport, acquit mean to act or to cause oneself to do something in a certain way.

behave may apply to the meeting of a standard of what is proper or decorous.

the children behaved in church

conduct implies action or behavior that shows the extent of one's power to control or direct oneself.

conducted herself with unfailing good humor

deport implies behaving so as to show how far one conforms to conventional rules of discipline or propriety.

the hero deported himself in accord with the code of chivalry

comport suggests conduct measured by what is expected or required of one in a certain class or position.

comported themselves as gentlemen

acquit applies to action under stress that deserves praise or meets expectations.

acquitted herself well in her first assignment

Examples of deport in a Sentence

Thousands of immigrants had been illegally deported.

deported them back to their country of birth

Recent Examples on the Web

Like Moore, many Philadelphians had stayed true to Garvey’s ideals even after the American government deported him in 1927. —Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2025

Villeda-Orellana was previously deported in 2007, 2018 and 2020, according to Aurora police. —Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 28 Oct. 2025

Then, on Saturday, she was deported. —Marcos Breton, Sacbee.com, 28 Oct. 2025

In October, Mario Guevara – a Salvadoran journalist who documented immigration raids – was deported to El Salvador after spending months in federal custody. —Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French deporter, from Latin deportare to carry away, from de- + portare to carry — more at fare

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for deport

• abort
• airport
• alport
• athwart
• carport
• comport
• consort
• distort
• escort
• exhort
• extort
• forecourt

Kids Definition

deport

verb

de·​port di-ˈpō(ə)rt 

-ˈpȯ(ə)rt

1

: to cause (oneself) to act in a certain way : conduct

deported themselves well in public

2

: to force (a person who is not a citizen) to leave a country

deportation

ˌdē-ˌpōr-ˈtā-shən

-ˌpȯr-

noun

deportee

ˌdē-ˌpōr-ˈtē

-ˌpȯr-

noun

Legal Definition

deport

transitive verb

de·​port di-ˈpōrt 

: to send (an alien) out of a country by order of deportation compare exclude

deportable adjective