Added 9 October 2026
ostracize
/ˈɒstɹəsaɪz/ verb
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about ostracize at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- To ban a person from a city for five or ten years through the procedure of ostracism. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
- To exclude a person from a community or from society by not communicating with them or by refusing to acknowledge their presence; to refuse to associate with or talk to; to shun.
Origin
From Ancient Greek ὀστρακίζω (ostrakízō, “to banish from a city by ostracism”), from ὄστρᾰκον (óstrăkon, “earthenware vessel; fragment of such a vessel, potsherd”) (from the fact that when voting was held to decide whether to banish people, their names were inscribed on potsherds) + -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō, suffix forming verbs)). The English word is cognate with French ostraciser.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)