excommunicate

Verb

excommunicate (third-person singular simple present excommunicates, present participle excommunicating, simple past and past participle excommunicated)

1. (transitive) To officially exclude someone from membership of a church or religious community.
   • “Perhaps it is because I have been excommunicated. It’s absurd, but I feel like the Jackdaw of Rheims.” ¶ She winced and bowed her head. Each time that he spoke flippantly of the Church he caused her pain.1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XXXVII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC, page 294
   • The Vatican has excommunicated a rebel group of ultra-conservative Catholics who defied Pope Leo by ordaining bishops without his consent, creating a schism in the Roman Catholic church. […] “The Vatican hopes that by being harsh on the bishops, the priests and faithful, maybe some of them will...2026 July 2, Angela Giuffrida, “Vatican excommunicates all members of ultra-conservative rebel group SSPX”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
2. (figuratively, historical, transitive) To exclude from any other group; to banish.
   • Samois includes celebate ^([sic]), heterosexual and bisexual women as well as lesbians, and I feel very strongly that this is the wisest choice. Our community is so fragile that we can't afford to fragment it by excommunicating non-lesbian women.1982 December 18, Pat Califa, “Open Policy”, in Gay Community News, volume 10, number 22, page 5
   • Although our Macs served us well, in those early, dark years Macintosh users were effectively excommunicated by the computer establishment.1987, InfoWorld, volume 9, number 37, page 46

Adjective

UK/ˌɛkskəˈmjuːnɪkət/US/ˌɛkskəˈmjunəkət/

excommunicate (not comparable)

1. (archaic) Excommunicated.
   • […]the iewes had conſpyred allredy that yff eny man did confeſſe that he was Chriſt / he ſhulde be excommunicat out of the Sinagoge.1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, John ix:[22], folio cxxxiiij, verso
   • Thou ſhalt ſtand curſt, and excommunicate[…]c. 1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life and Death of King Iohn”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...

Noun

UK/ˌɛkskəˈmjuːnɪkət/US/ˌɛkskəˈmjunəkət/

excommunicate (plural excommunicates)

1. An excommunicated person.

   Synonyms:

   excommunicant, excommunicatee