Expelling

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The action of driving something or someone away encompasses the removal of substances from the body, the dismissal of individuals from a location, and the elimination of specific factors from a system or organization
2. The process involves forcing out substances from the body, removing individuals from places, and eradicating certain elements from a collective or framework
3. The act of forcing out or displacing entities includes the ejection of substances from bodily systems, the removal of people from environments, and the nullification of factors within a structure or group

Etymology: "Expelling" is the present participle of "expel," so its history is that of the verb. The verb entered English in the late Middle Ages from Latin "expellere," a compound of "ex-" meaning "out" and "pellere," meaning "to drive." Its original picture is physical: to drive something out of a place by force, much as one would chase an animal from a field or a crowd out of a hall. The Latin "pellere" also gave English "propel," "impulse," and "compel," all sharing the core idea of pushing. Where "compel" drives someone toward an action, "expel" drives something outward, which explains why the word spread so easily from literal ejection to figurative removal. The same sense of forceful pushing underlies the verb's later uses for expulsion from schools, communities, and bodies.

Synonyms: discharging, evicting, ousting, ejecting, banishing

Antonyms: admitting, welcoming, receiving, allowing, embracing