excommunication

UK: /ˌɛkskəmjuːnɪˈkeɪʃ^ən/

US: /ˌɛkskəˌmjunɪˈkeɪʃən/

US: (eks′kə myo̅o̅′ni kā′shən)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ex•com•mu•ni•ca•tion  (eks′kə myo̅o̅′ni kā′shən), n. 

1. Religion the act of excommunicating.
2. Religion the state of being excommunicated.
3. Religion the ecclesiastical sentence by which a person is excommunicated.

• Late Latin excommūnicātiōn- (stem of excommūnicātiō). See excommunicate, -ion
• late Middle English 1425–75

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

ex•com•mu•ni•cate /ˌɛkskəˈmyunɪˌkeɪt/   v. [~ + object] , -cat•ed, -cat•ing. 

1. Religion to cut off from the rites of a church.

ex•com•mu•ni•ca•tion /ˌɛkskəˌmyunɪˈkeɪʃən/  n. [countable* uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ex•com•mu•ni•cate  (v. eks′kə myo̅o̅′ni kāt′;n., adj. eks′kə myo̅o̅′ni kit, -kāt′), v., -cat•ed, -cat•ing, n., adj. 
v.t. 

1. Religion to cut off from communion with a church or exclude from the sacraments of a church by ecclesiastical sentence.
2. Religion to exclude or expel from membership or participation in any group, association, etc.:
   an advertiser excommunicated from a newspaper.

n. 

3. Religion an excommunicated person.

adj. 

4. Religion cut off from communion with a church;
   excommunicated.

• Late Latin excommūnicātus literally, put out of the community (past participle of excommūnicāre), equivalent. to ex- ex-¹ + commūn(is) common, public + -ic- (by analogy with commūnicāre to communicate) + -ātus -ate¹
• late Middle English excommunicaten (verb, verbal) 1375–1425

ex′com•mu′ni•ca′tor, n.