ostracism
(noun) the act of excluding someone from society by general consent
banishment, ostracism, Coventry
(noun) the state of being banished or ostracized (excluded from society by general consent); “the association should get rid of its elderly members--not by euthanasia, of course, but by Coventry”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
ostracism (countable and uncountable, plural ostracisms)
(historical) In ancient Athens (and some other cities), the temporary banishment by popular vote of a citizen considered dangerous to the state. [from 16th c.]
(figuratively) Banishment by some general consent. [from 17th c.]
Temporary exclusion from a community or society.
• (exclusion): ostracization, shunning, petalism
• Castroism, Croatisms, Socratism, microsats, rotacisms
Source: Wiktionary
Os"tra*cism, n. Etym: [Gr. Ostracize.]
1. (Gr. Antiq.)
Definition: Banishment by popular vote, -- a means adopted at Athens to rid the city of a person whose talent and influence gave umbrage.
2. Banishment; exclusion; as, social ostracism. Public envy is as an ostracism, that eclipseth men when they grow too great. Bacon. Sentenced to a perpetual ostracism from the . . . confidence, and honors, and emoluments of his country. A. Hamilton.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
4 April 2025
(verb) kill by cutting the head off with a guillotine; “The French guillotined many Vietnamese while they occupied the country”
The world’s most expensive coffee costs more than US$700 per kilogram. Asian palm civet – a cat-like creature in Indonesia, eats fruits, including select coffee cherries. It excretes partially digested seeds that produce a smooth, less acidic brew of coffee called kopi luwak.
