exorcise

verb ex·or·cise \ ˈek-ˌsȯr-ˌsīz , -sər- \

variants: or less commonly exorcize

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

Examples: exorcise in a Sentence

Definition of exorcise

exorcised also exorcized; exorcising also exorcizing

transitive verb

1 a : to expel (an evil spirit) by adjuration

b : to get rid of (something troublesome, menacing, or oppressive)

2 : to free of an evil spirit

—

exorciser

noun

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Examples of exorcise in a Sentence

The movie is about a priest who tries to exorcise demons from a young girl.
please exorcise that offensive word from your vocabulary

Recent Examples of exorcise from the Web

Eventually, this task brings them into close quarters with a ghost whom the sisters decide to exorcise with a séance.

— amy wang | the oregonian/oregonlive, OregonLive.com, "Arts picks: A new 'Cinderella' tale, Jackson Bottom Wetlands art show, more," 31 May 2018
The practical lesson of Ms. Kidd’s novel is that a person who wants to exorcise a mansion of its secrets would be wise to leave her own ghosts at home.

— sam sacks, WSJ, "Fiction Chronicle: Under West Indian Eyes," 18 May 2018
One way to exorcise this frustration is going out and voting for Putin.

— karla adam, Washington Post, "From posh oligarchs to taxis drivers, Russians in London feel a chill," 20 Apr. 2018
After the minor rite, Maginot said Bishop Melczek gave him permission to exorcise Ammons.

— marisa kwiatkowski, Indianapolis Star, "The exorcisms of Latoya Ammons," 25 Jan. 2014
Then again, everything happens, as Hickey tries to exorcise damage.

— ian frazier, The New Yorker, "Eugene O’Neill’s Unhappy Hour," 30 Apr. 2018
The court said that Asumal Harpalani, known to his followers as Asaram Bapu, raped a 16-year-old girl at an ashram in Jodhpur in 2013 on the pretext of exorcising her evil spirits.

— vidhi doshi, Washington Post, "Prominent Indian guru gets a life sentence for raping a teenager," 25 Apr. 2018
But Maclellan could not advance to the championships without exorcising the misfortune that eliminated him last year.

— branson wright, cleveland.com, "NCAA D3 Wrestling Championships: Baldwin Wallace senior Tyler Maclellan has high hopes (video)," 7 Mar. 2018
The Vikings will try to change their fortunes, and even though the team is so different, a win could exorcise some demons for the franchise after that gut-wrenching loss to the Saints.

— josh katzenstein, NOLA.com, "Why this Saints-Vikings game is so much different than the 2009 NFC Championship," 11 Jan. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of exorcise

Middle English, from Anglo-French exorciscer, from Late Latin exorcizare, from Greek exorkizein, from ex- + horkizein to bind by oath, adjure, from horkos oath

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1539

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year