noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
ŏs′trə-sĭz′′əm
UK:/ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/
General-American, US:/ˈɒs trəˌsɪz əm/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:AO1 S T R AH0 S IH2 Z AH0 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
In ancient Athens (and some other cities), the temporary banishment by popular vote of a citizen considered dangerous to the state.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, historical, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Banishment by some general consent.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, figuratively, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Temporary exclusion from a community or society.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
the state of being banished or ostracized (excluded from society by general consent)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the association should get rid of its elderly members--not by euthanasia, of course, but by Coventry
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: banishment, Coventry
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: exclusion
History
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ὀστρακισμός (ostrakismós, “banishment by means of voting with pot shards”), from ὀστρακίζω (ostrakízō, “ostracize”) + -ισμός (-ismós, “-ism”), from ὄστρακον (óstrakon, “clay pot”).
Across languages
Translations
51 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Asturian:
ostracismu
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Catalan:
ostracisme
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Chinese Mandarin:
陶片放逐制
(táopiàn fàngzhúzhì)
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Danish:
ostrakisme
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Dutch:
ostracisme
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Dutch:
schervengericht
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Esperanto:
ostracismo
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Finnish:
ostrakismos
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Finnish:
ostrakismi
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
French:
ostracisme
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Galician:
ostracismo
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
German:
Scherbengericht
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Italian:
ostracismo
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Japanese:
陶片追放
(tōhentsuihō)
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Polish:
ostracyzm
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Portuguese:
ostracismo
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Russian:
остраки́зм
(ostrakízm)
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Spanish:
ostracismo
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Swedish:
ostracism
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Ukrainian:
остракізм
(ostrakizm)
— in ancient Greece, the temporary banishment by popular vote
Asturian:
ostracismu
— banishment, exclusion from community
Bulgarian:
отлъчване
(otlǎčvane)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Catalan:
ostracisme
— banishment, exclusion from community
Chinese Mandarin:
放逐
(fàngzhú)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Danish:
udstødelse
— banishment, exclusion from community
Danish:
udelukkelse
— banishment, exclusion from community
Dutch:
ostracisme
— banishment, exclusion from community
Dutch:
banning
— banishment, exclusion from community
Dutch:
uitsluiting
— banishment, exclusion from community
Dutch:
verbanning
— banishment, exclusion from community
Dutch:
verwijdering
— banishment, exclusion from community
Finnish:
hyljeksiminen
— banishment, exclusion from community
Finnish:
sulkeminen ulkopuolelle
— banishment, exclusion from community
Finnish:
eristäminen
— banishment, exclusion from community
French:
ostracisme
— banishment, exclusion from community
Galician:
ostracismo
— banishment, exclusion from community
German:
Ächtung
— banishment, exclusion from community
German:
Ausgrenzung
— banishment, exclusion from community
Icelandic:
útskúfun
— banishment, exclusion from community
Italian:
ostracismo
— banishment, exclusion from community
Japanese:
村八分
(murahachibu)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Polish:
ostracyzm
— banishment, exclusion from community
Portuguese:
ostracismo
— banishment, exclusion from community
Romanian:
ostracism
— banishment, exclusion from community
Russian:
остраки́зм
(ostrakízm)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Russian:
изгна́ние
(izgnánije)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Spanish:
ostracismo
— banishment, exclusion from community
Swedish:
utfrysning
— banishment, exclusion from community
Swedish:
uteslutning
— banishment, exclusion from community
Ukrainian:
остракізм
(ostrakizm)
— banishment, exclusion from community
Ukrainian:
вигнання
(vyhnannja)
— banishment, exclusion from community
