exodus

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   The departure of a large number of people at the same time.

   The factory closures caused a mass exodus of workers from the town.

2. 2
   noun

   A journey by a large group fleeing a dangerous or hostile place.

   The war triggered an exodus of refugees toward the border.

Simplified etymology

Exodus is formed from Greek ex-, “out of,” and hodos, “way,” giving the sense “departure.” The element hodos also appears in period and episode.

From Latin exodus, from Ancient Greek ἔξοδος (éxodos, “expedition, procession, departure”). Doublet of exodos. From late Old English only as a proper noun, Exodus, the biblical book; use as a common noun is from the early 17th century.

Topics

External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary