oust

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verb \ˈau̇st\

Definition of oust

transitive verb
1a : to remove from or dispossess of property or position by legal action, by force, or by the compulsion of necessity The rebels ousted the dictator from power.b : to take away (something, such as a right or authority) : bar, remove The states do not like attempts by Congress to oust their jurisdiction.
2 : to take the place of : supplant must be careful that quantity does not oust quality — R. V. Williams

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Examples of oust in a Sentence

The rebels ousted the dictator from power.
Large national banks are ousting local banks in many communities.

Recent Examples of oust from the Web

The termination of Jason Tomlinson, its former CFO, means that all three top officers of the troubled foundation have been ousted.

— andrew wolfson, The Courier-Journal, "U of L Foundation fires its chief financial officer in an effort to clean house," 18 July 2017
The loss of a financial backer puts pressure on Sony studio chief Tom Rothman, who replaced the ousted Amy Pascal in 2014.

— anousha sakoui, Bloomberg.com, "Sony, Lone Star End Film Funding Deal With $50 Million Remaining," 17 July 2017
Trump made calls to oust Kasich's pick for Ohio Republican Party chairman.

— jessie balmert, Cincinnati.com, "VP Pence's false attack on Kasich continues Trump feud," 17 July 2017
This marks the first formal legislation designed to oust the real-estate tycoon from the nation's highest office, and succeeds Green's impassioned call from the House floor for Trump's impeachment in May.

— robert newhouse, Teen Vogue, "Two Congressmen Have Officially Filed Articles of Impeachment Against Trump," 12 July 2017
But the Fatah strongman would fall from grace after his forces were easily ousted from Gaza by Hamas in 2007.

— elliot kaufman, National Review, "Mahmoud Abbas’s Legacy Blows Up in His Face," 11 July 2017
The result ousted the current party chairman, Isaac Herzog, who came in a distant third with less than 17 percent of the vote.

— aron heller, Jewish Journal, "Israel's Labor Party looks to rebrand with leadership vote," 5 July 2017
As the thinking goes, these people are less likely to be exposed to information contrary to the posts their like-minded friends are sharing that could oust fake news and reveal the truth.

— ben panko, Smithsonian, "How Fake News Breaks Your Brain," 30 June 2017
Just a few weeks later, Ailes, since ousted from Fox, is advising the Trump campaign ahead of the presidential debates. 15.

— michael sebastian, Cosmopolitan, "30 Times Donald Trump Has Been Completely Insulting to Women," 29 June 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of oust

Middle English, from Anglo-French oster, ouster to take off, remove, oust, from Late Latin obstare to ward off, from Latin, to stand in the way, from ob- in the way + stare to stand — more at ob-, stand

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First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of oust

eject, expel, oust, evict mean to drive or force out. eject carries an especially strong implication of throwing or thrusting out from within as a physical action. ejected an obnoxious patron from the bar expel stresses a thrusting out or driving away especially permanently which need not be physical. a student expelled from college oust implies removal or dispossession by power of the law or by force or compulsion. police ousted the squatters evict chiefly applies to turning out of house and home. evicted for nonpayment of rent