purge
noun/pɜːdʒ/
/pɜːrdʒ/
- the act of removing people, often violently, from an organization because their views are unacceptable to the people who have power
- A purge of the party was ordered.
- the Stalinist purges
- The prime minister carried out a purge of ministers sympathetic to reform.
Word OriginMiddle English (in the legal sense ‘clear oneself of a charge’): from Old French purgier, from Latin purgare ‘purify’, from purus ‘pure’.Definitions on the go
Look up any word in the dictionary offline, anytime, anywhere with the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.
Check pronunciation:
purge