YOUR VOCABULARY, ONE WORD AT A TIME

ostracise

Verb

IPA /ˈɒstrəsaɪz/

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Meaning in plain English

To deliberately exclude someone from a group by refusing to speak to them, meet them or accept their participation.

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Pronunciation

ostracise/ˈɒstrəsaɪz/

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A group meets regularly
It deliberately refuses to include one person
That person is socially isolated

To ostracise someone is to shut them out of a social group deliberately.

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The children ostracised a new classmate because she dressed differently.
Colleagues should not ostracise someone for raising an honest concern.

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Colleagues should not ________ someone for raising an honest concern.

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ostracise — To deliberately exclude someone from a group by refusing to speak to them, meet them or accept their participation.

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To deliberately exclude someone from a group by refusing to speak to them, meet them or accept their participation.

Compare: The children ostracised a new classmate because she dressed differently.

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Word origin

From Greek ostrakizein, related to ostrakon, a piece of pottery used in votes to banish citizens.

Did you know?

Ostracise is a British spelling; ostracize is also used in British English and is standard in American English.

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