ethnic cleansing

noun

: the expulsion, imprisonment, or killing of an ethnic minority by a dominant majority in order to achieve ethnic homogeneity

Examples of ethnic cleansing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Conquest may involve ethnic cleansing, as illustrated in the recent U.S. proposal, supported by Israel, to empty the Gaza Strip and move its population to nearby countries. Tanisha M. Fazal, Foreign Affairs, 21 Mar. 2025 Human rights experts and organizations have called this operation an ethnic cleansing and even a genocide. Mark Davis, Newsweek, 14 Mar. 2025 The proposal has been welcomed by Netanyahu, but derided by Palestinian and Arab leaders alike, who characterize it as ethnic cleansing. Mick Krever, CNN, 18 Feb. 2025 In 2016, following a free election that saw voters reject the junta in favor of democratic candidates, the military launched a brutal campaign against the Rohingya widely recognized as an ethnic cleansing, with thousands killed and hundreds of thousands fleeing across the border to Bangladesh. Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 21 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ethnic cleansing

Word History

First Known Use

1991, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ethnic cleansing was in 1991

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ethnic cleansing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethnic%20cleansing. Accessed 1 May. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on ethnic cleansing

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!