Vocabularium

This is dedicated to Ted Haggard.

ostracize (os·tra·cize): / OS truh size /
transitive verb

(1) to exclude from a group by general consent (as from society, privileges, friendship, conversation, etc.)
(2) to banish (a person) from their native country; to expatriate; to exile

[From Greek ostrakizein meaning “to banish by voting with potsherds,” derived from ostrakon meaning “pottery shard, potsherd, ballot, shell.”]

Usage: With his disgrace continuing to grow in light of his drug use, three-year tryst with a male prostitute, and public hypocrisy and deception, one can only hope Ted Haggard is ostracized by the American Taleban long enough to comprehend the anguish he has continually heaved onto gays and lesbians throughout the nation.

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