excommunicate

1 of 2

verb

ex·​com·​mu·​ni·​cate ˌek-skə-ˈmyü-nə-ˌkāt 

excommunicated; excommunicating; excommunicates

transitive verb

: to subject to excommunication

excommunicator

ˌek-skə-ˈmyü-nə-ˌkā-tər 

noun

excommunicate

2 of 2

adjective

ex·​com·​mu·​ni·​cate ˌek-skə-ˈmyü-ni-kət 

: excluded from the rights of church membership : excommunicated

excommunicate noun

Examples of excommunicate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

In 2006, for instance, the Vatican under Pope Benedict XVI excommunicated Emmanuel Milingo, a Zambian archbishop, who married a South Korean woman in a ceremony inside the Unification Church of Sun Myung Moon, conducted unauthorized exorcisms and established a movement for married priests. —Michelle Boorstein, Washington Post, 5 July 2024

In the interim, Solo physically excommunicated Jimmy Uso from The Bloodline six months ago and started his own version of the group with Jacob Fatu as his enforcer. —Shaheem Reid, Variety, 8 Oct. 2024

Snuffer is a lawyer who lives in Utah and was excommunicated from the LDS Church in 2013 for apostasy. —Lizz Schumer, People.com, 29 Sep. 2024

There, on the site where, in 2014, Pope Francis excommunicated all members of the Mob, Ciotti had to do something involving a bishop. —D. T. Max, The New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Late Latin excommunicatus, past participle of excommunicare, from Latin ex- + Late Latin communicare to communicate

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1521, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

excommunicate

verb

ex·​com·​mu·​ni·​cate

ˌeks-kə-ˈmyü-nə-ˌkāt

excommunicated; excommunicating

: to shut off officially from the rights of church membership

excommunication

-ˌmyü-nə-ˈkā-shən

noun

excommunicator

-ˈmyü-nə-ˌkāt-ər

noun