expelled
Meaning
To force someone to leave a place, organization, or school, especially as an official punishment.
To force something out, especially air or gas, from a container or from the body.
Structure
Usage
He was expelled from school for repeated misconduct.
The engine expelled a cloud of black smoke.
She took a deep breath and then slowly expelled the air.
Etymology
The word 'expelled' originates from the Latin verb expellere, a compound of ex- ("out") and pellere ("to drive, to push"). This literal sense of "driving out" was carried directly into Middle English from Latin. The modern form 'expelled' follows the regular English verb conjugation pattern, adding '-ed' to the base 'expel'. Consequently, the core meaning has evolved from the physical act of forcing something out to encompass both the physical ejection of substances and the formal, often punitive, removal of a person from a group or institution.
Analysis
- ex: A Latin prefix meaning "out of, from, thoroughly." - pel: A Latin root (from pellere) meaning "to drive, to push." - led: An English suffix indicating the past tense and past participle form of a regular verb.