excommunicate
excommunicate Lexical Profile
excommunicate Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To officially exclude someone from participation in the sacraments and services of a religious community, especially the Christian Church.
"Pope Leo X issued a papal bull threatening to excommunicate Martin Luther unless he recanted his writings."
To expel, banish, or ostracize someone from a non-religious group, organization, or faction.
"Critics who questioned the party's platform found themselves effectively excommunicated from its inner circle."
• adjective
Excluded from the sacraments, rights, or fellowship of a church by ecclesiastical authority.
"Under medieval canon law, an excommunicate ruler could no longer command the feudal allegiance of Christian subjects."
• noun
A person who has been officially excluded from the communion, sacraments, and fellowship of a church.
"The historical register listed the names of heretics and excommunicates who had been barred from burial in consecrated ground."
Word Nuance & Usage
When used as a noun or adjective, the word is pronounced with a reduced vowel at the end (/ˌɛkskəˈmjuːnɪkət/), whereas the verb form ends with a full long vowel (/ˌɛkskəˈmjuːnɪkeɪt/).
• Rhymes for excommunicate
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin 'excommunicatus', the past participle of 'excommunicare' ('to put out of the community'), formed from 'ex-' ('out of') and 'communis' ('common, shared').