exorcism

C2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈɛk.sɔɹˌsɪ.zəm/ UK /ˈɛk.sɔː.sɪ.zəm/ See IPA manual

Freq #15549

Meanings

1

noun
A ritual performed to drive out an evil spirit from a person, place, or thing.

The priest was called in to perform an exorcism on the haunted house.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a ritual performed to drive... dispossession

Word family

Forms exorcisms

Etymology

From Old French exorciser, from Late Latin exorcizō, from Ancient Greek ἐξορκίζω (exorkízō, “to ward off, to charge under oath, adjure”), from ἐξ (ex) + ὅρκος (hórkos).

exorciser Old French exorcizō la-lat ἐξορκίζω Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# exorcism

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈɛk.sɔɹˌsɪ.zəm/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈɛk.sɔː.sɪ.zəm/
**Frequency rank:** 15549

## Meanings
1. A ritual performed to drive out an evil spirit from a person, place, or thing.

## Examples
- The priest was called in to perform an exorcism on the haunted house.

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: exorciser
- Root: exorcizō
- Root: ἐξορκίζω

## Etymology
From Old French exorciser, from Late Latin exorcizō, from Ancient Greek ἐξορκίζω (exorkízō, “to ward off, to charge under oath, adjure”), from ἐξ (ex) + ὅρκος (hórkos).

## AI Etymology
Exorcism is from Old French exorciser, from Late Latin exorcizō, from Ancient Greek ἐξορκίζω (exorkízō, “to ward off, to charge under oath, adjure”), from ἐξ (ex) + ὅρκος (hórkos). The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern nominal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include exorciser (Old French), exorcizō (la-lat), and ἐξορκίζω (Ancient Greek). Current senses include a ritual performed to drive out an evil spirit from a person, place, or thing.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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