as in to banish
to not allow (someone) to continue being a member of a group and especially the Roman Catholic church
He was excommunicated from the church for his radical practices.
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Recent Examples of excommunicate
The Catholic Church takes this secrecy seriously and can excommunicate any cardinal who violates the rule.
—
Caroline Blair, People.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Leo excommunicated Luther in 1520, helping to create the divide between Protestants and Catholics.
—Alison Hudson, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 May 2025
When Luther refused, Leo excommunicated him in 1521.
—Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 May 2025
The church ultimately excommunicated Viganó, who had also become a vocal proponent of Trump and rightwing conspiracy theories.
—Liam Adams, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excommunicate
Caroline Blair, People.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Leo excommunicated Luther in 1520, helping to create the divide between Protestants and Catholics.
—Alison Hudson, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 May 2025
When Luther refused, Leo excommunicated him in 1521.
—Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 May 2025
The church ultimately excommunicated Viganó, who had also become a vocal proponent of Trump and rightwing conspiracy theories.
—Liam Adams, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excommunicate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excommunicate
Verb
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Softening those characters for present-day sensibilities banishes what little edge there was and leaves everything feeling over-bright in a restless and relentless production.—
David Benedict,
Variety,
24 June 2025
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Any input would help. – Visiting Accident Dear Visiting: Don’t banish yourself just yet.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Mercury News,
24 June 2025
Verb
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The country’s most popular politician, Juan Domingo Perón, was exiled in Spain, his party banned.—
Daniel Alarcón,
New Yorker,
30 June 2025
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Roundy was part of the FLDS church but was exiled in 2020.—
Marlene Lenthang,
NBC news,
26 June 2025
Verb
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In addition, revisions to the RAP plan would allow married borrowers to exclude their spouse’s income by filing separate tax returns – a significant change given that the prior version of the senate bill had excluded this language.—
Adam S. Minsky,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
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Lee's revised plan would have excluded all U.S. Forest Service land from possible sale.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
30 June 2025
Verb
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The group of rats that was fed a diet supplemented with chitosan expelled more MPs that any of the other groups.—
Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
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Schools can no longer expel students for chronic absences alone; supportive interventions are required.—
Aliss Higham,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 June 2025
Verb
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What surprised me most was learning of their unique individual paths to success when the second wave feminist movement often isolated and ostracized lesbians.—
Morgan Lieberman,
NPR,
26 June 2025
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Many of them were ostracized by their families, leading to thousands of abortions and numerous cases of infanticide and suicide.—
Katharine Q. Seelye,
New York Times,
26 May 2025
Verb
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Home plate umpire Ramon De Jesus called strike three on Rockies outfielder Tyler Freeman, and he immediately got ejected after arguing the call.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
29 June 2025
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Until 2006, patent holders could presumptively obtain a court injunction that ordered infringers to stop using their invention (akin to a landowner’s legal right to eject trespassers camping on their property).—
Alden Abbott,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
Verb
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In a series of tweets, Charli XCX dismissed the controversy and defended her creative choices.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
30 June 2025
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Social media companies have already gotten several claims dismissed, including a claim of unjust enrichment, Goetz said, because Nazario failed to respond to them.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
30 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Excommunicate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excommunicate. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
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