exorcist
UK[ˈɛk.sɔː.sɪst]US[ˈɛk.sɔːr.sɪst]
n
a person who performs the religious or spiritual ritual of expelling evil spirits from a person or place.
n
(informal) someone who eliminates or drives out something perceived as negative or unwanted.
Morpheme Breakdown
ex
orc
ist
ex
out
orc
bind by oath
ist
agent noun suffix
Etymology
the word 'exorcist' originates from the greek verb 'exorkizein', which literally meant 'to bind by an oath' or 'to adjure'. this term combined 'ex-' (out) and 'horkos' (oath), reflecting the ancient practice of commanding a spirit to depart by invoking a sacred oath or a higher authority. through ecclesiastical latin 'exorcista', the term entered english, specializing in christian contexts to denote a person who expels demons. the core logic evolved from the concept of 'swearing out' an evil entity to the modern sense of a specialist who drives out malevolent spirits.
Analysis
Structure: ex (out) + orc (bind by oath) + ist (agent noun suffix)
ex- (latin prefix, meaning 'out of, from'); -orc- (from latin exorcizare, itself from greek exorkizein, from ex- + horkos 'oath'); -ist (latin/greek agent suffix, meaning 'one who does or practices').
Examples
the priest, a trained exorcist, was called to cleanse the old house.
in the film, the exorcist performed a lengthy and intense ritual to free the girl from possession.
he was hailed as an exorcist of corporate corruption, determined to drive out malpractice from the company.