excommunicate

American  

[eks-kuh-myoo-ni-keyt, eks-kuh-myoo-ni-kit, -keyt] / ˌɛks kəˈmyu nɪˌkeɪt, ˌɛks kəˈmyu nɪ kɪt, -ˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

excommunicated, excommunicating

1. to cut off from communion with a church or exclude from the sacraments of a church by ecclesiastical sentence.

2. to exclude or expel from membership or participation in any group, association, etc..

   an advertiser excommunicated from a newspaper.

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noun

1. an excommunicated person.

adjective

1. cut off from communion with a church; excommunicated.

excommunicate British  

verb

1. (tr) to sentence (a member of the Church) to exclusion from the communion of believers and from the privileges and public prayers of the Church

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adjective

1. having incurred such a sentence

noun

1. an excommunicated person

Other Word Forms

• excommunicable adjective
• excommunication noun
• excommunicative adjective
• excommunicator noun
• unexcommunicated adjective

Etymology

Origin of excommunicate

1375–1425; late Middle English excommunicaten (v.) < Late Latin excommūnicātus literally, put out of the community (past participle of excommūnicāre ), equivalent to ex- ex- ¹ + commūn ( is ) common, public + -ic- (by analogy with commūnicāre to communicate ) + -ātus -ate ¹

Explanation

To excommunicate someone is to officially banish them from their church. In everyday usage, this word can also refer to expelling or excluding someone from any kind of group. The science club might excommunicate you if you declare that the earth is flat. If a congregant breaks an important church rule, its leaders might formally remove — or excommunicate—that person. This word comes from the Late Latin excommunicare, "put out of the community," or in Church Latin, "expel from communion." To excommunicate a Christian means, in part, that they can't participate in church rituals including the sacrament of communion and are no longer part of the community.

Example Sentences

He did this by threatening to excommunicate from the Church those bishops who refused to comply with his wishes.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2025

“They just said, ‘Hey, let’s excommunicate her father.’

From Seattle Times • Aug. 3, 2022

“They can’t excommunicate me because I am not going anywhere,” she says.

From New York Times • May 22, 2020

That the Prince of Wales was heavily involved in the decision to excommunicate his brother is evidence of a monarchy in flux.

From The Guardian • Nov. 23, 2019

Such a pair were once sent with bulls to excommunicate Barnabas Visconti, but Barnabas only made them eat their bulls—parchment, ribbons, leaden seals and all.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White