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’.Want to learn more?
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