What does expelled mean?
Expelled is the past tense and past participle of the verb expel, meaning forced out or removed. Its most familiar use concerns formal removal from institutions: a student may be expelled from school for serious misconduct, a member of parliament expelled from a party, or a diplomat expelled from a country as a political reprisal. In each case the removal is deliberate, official, and typically punitive rather than voluntary. A second, more physical sense describes matter being driven out of a space — air expelled from the lungs, exhaust expelled by an engine, or water expelled during a reaction. The word derives from the Latin expellere, combining ex- ('out') with pellere ('to drive'), so at its root it simply means 'driven out'. Because it implies authority and force behind the removal, expelled carries a weightier tone than softer alternatives like left or withdrew, making it the natural choice wherever dismissal is formal and consequential.
verb (past tense and past participle of expel)Forced out or removed, especially from a school, organization, country, or other body, usually as an official punishment or consequence. Also used of gases, fluids, or contents being driven out of a container, body, or space.
- Removed officially and punitively from a school, organization, club, legislative body, or team.
- Deported or ordered out of a country.
- Driven or forced out physically — of air, gas, liquid, or contents leaving a body, vessel, or space.
"The student was expelled from the academy after repeated violations of the honor code."
"Two diplomats were expelled from the embassy amid escalating tensions between the governments."
"As the piston moved upward, the exhaust gases were expelled through the valve."
The same Latin root that gives us 'expelled' gives us 'impulse' — to be expelled is literally to have been 'driven out' by a push from within.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of expelled
Expelled comes from the Latin expellere, formed from ex- ('out') plus pellere ('to drive, push'), entering English via Old French as part of the verb expel in the late Middle English period. The Latin root pellere also yields related borrowings such as pulse, impulse, propel, repel, and compulsion, all preserving the core idea of driving or pushing. The noun expulsion and adjective expulsive belong to the same family.
Related word forms
How expelled is actually used
Formal to neutral in register. In educational and political contexts it carries a strong connotation of official punishment or sanction; in scientific or medical writing it is neutral and descriptive.
Easily confused with expelled
Dispelled means driven away or eliminated (as doubts or fears), while expelled means forced out of a place, group, or container.