English Reference
noun · verb

exile

n. · v.
US /ˈɛɡˌzaɪɫ/ UK /ˈɛɡzaɪl/ ex·ile UK spelling exiled, exiles, exiling

  1. 01 B2 Upper Intermediate

    n.the situation where you are forced to leave your country and live somewhere else, often for a long time.

    n.the state of being barred from one's native country, typically for political or punitive reasons. Uncountable in this abstract sense.

    Simple

    The former president lived in exile for twenty years before it was safe to return home.

    In context

    After the failed coup, the intellectual elite spent decades in exile, maintaining their cultural identity through underground publications.

  2. 02 C1 Advanced Formal

    n.a person who has been forced to leave their country.

    n.an individual who lives in banishment from their native country.

    Simple

    The city became a gathering place for political exiles from all over the region.

    In context

    The community of exiles worked tirelessly to lobby foreign governments for a change in their homeland's regime.

  3. 03 B2 Upper Intermediate

    v.to force someone to leave their country as a punishment.

    v.to expel and bar someone from their native country, typically as a formal punishment.

    Simple

    The king decided to exile the rebel leaders to a distant island.

    In context

    The government sought to exile the dissenting journalists, hoping to silence their criticism by removing them from the local population.

Last year French officials disrupted a plot that they believe was aimed at killing Vladimir Osechkin, a Russian exile who lives under police protection and works to help military defectors flee Putin’s war.

The Guardian· 13 Aug 2026

But teaching in exile comes with its own difficulties.

Al Jazeera· 15 Aug 2026
This entry
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Frequent
Updated