as in expulsion
the forced removal from a homeland
when Romeo learns he has been sentenced to banishment, he claims it is worse than death because he will be separated from Juliet forever
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Recent Examples of banishment
After eight episodes, six banishments (both failed and successful), and one controversial blue sweater, Colton Underwood was officially murdered on The Traitors, thus ending the time of one of Season 4’s most controversial contestants.
—
Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 6 Feb. 2026
By not telling Candiace that Colton had been saying her name the previous night, Rob stood back and let Candiace dig her own grave with Colton's murder, resulting in her immediate banishment at the roundtable.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Feb. 2026
Chris Paul’s banishment from the LA Clippers is over.
—Law Murray, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Underwood has been one of the most vocal Faithfuls this season and has led the charge on a number of misguided Faithful banishments, giving Rinna some room to maneuver out from under his argument.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 30 Jan. 2026
By episode five, Michael had moved on from suspecting Yam Yam to suspecting Colton, who was a ringleader in the previous episode’s banishment of Big Brother fan favorite Tiffany Mitchell.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2026
After his banishment, Rapaport apologized in his confessional.
—Emily Longeretta, Variety, 16 Jan. 2026
Many quite authentic Natives were targeted for banishment, and the ugly infighting their work inspired was covered widely—by the standards of Indian affairs—in the American media, which saw the battles as part of the larger identity wars raging across the nation in the new millennium.
—David Treuer, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026
After another challenge and the banishment of Williams, the Traitors were tasked with a murder in plain sight.
—Jodi Guglielmi, Rolling Stone, 8 Jan. 2026
Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 6 Feb. 2026
By not telling Candiace that Colton had been saying her name the previous night, Rob stood back and let Candiace dig her own grave with Colton's murder, resulting in her immediate banishment at the roundtable.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Feb. 2026
Chris Paul’s banishment from the LA Clippers is over.
—Law Murray, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Underwood has been one of the most vocal Faithfuls this season and has led the charge on a number of misguided Faithful banishments, giving Rinna some room to maneuver out from under his argument.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 30 Jan. 2026
By episode five, Michael had moved on from suspecting Yam Yam to suspecting Colton, who was a ringleader in the previous episode’s banishment of Big Brother fan favorite Tiffany Mitchell.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2026
After his banishment, Rapaport apologized in his confessional.
—Emily Longeretta, Variety, 16 Jan. 2026
Many quite authentic Natives were targeted for banishment, and the ugly infighting their work inspired was covered widely—by the standards of Indian affairs—in the American media, which saw the battles as part of the larger identity wars raging across the nation in the new millennium.
—David Treuer, The Atlantic, 13 Jan. 2026
After another challenge and the banishment of Williams, the Traitors were tasked with a murder in plain sight.
—Jodi Guglielmi, Rolling Stone, 8 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for banishment
Noun
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Johnson said before the demonstrations that students who participate in the protests will be marked absent from class, but would not be disciplined, such as with suspensions or expulsions.—
Jessica Seaman,
Denver Post,
30 Jan. 2026
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On the first offense, a violator would be subject to immediate expulsion from the legislative chamber for the remainder of the day, a fine of not less than $500 but not exceeding $1,000, and referral to the chamber’s ethics committee.—
Barbara Hoberock,
Oklahoma Voice,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The effort appears to be the first use of a law enacted three years ago allowing the revocation of citizenship and subsequent deportation of Palestinian citizens who were convicted of certain violent crimes such as terrorism and received financial support from the Palestinian Authority as a reward.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
13 Feb. 2026
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Morales Tejada remains detained pending deportation to El Salvador, officials said.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Banishment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/banishment. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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