herem

or che·rem

[ Sephardic Hebrew khe-rem; Ashkenazic Hebrew khey-ruhm ]

noun

, Hebrew.

1. the most severe form of excommunication, formerly used by rabbis in sentencing wrongdoers, usually for an indefinite period of time.

Word History and Origins

Origin of herem¹

ḥerem literally, banishment

Example Sentences

“But he was a rabbi once, before he was put in herem. People thought him a tzaddik, if you’d believe me.”

From Literature

Gen. Martin Herem, the commander of the Estonian Defense Forces, struck a more hostile tone toward Russia, saying it must be driven from Ukrainian territory because any success it achieves “will cause huge damage in our region’s stability.”

From New York Times

Gen. Martin Herem, Estonia’s chief of defense, during a news conference at an air base in northern Estonia with Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the U.S.

From Seattle Times

Herem’s colleague and the air force chief, Brig.

From Seattle Times

"At the moment, these missiles are more useful for Estonia's security in defence of Ukraine rather than at a live fire exercise on an Estonian training area," Lieutenant General Martin Herem, Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces, said in a statement.

From Reuters