dispossession

English

Etymology

From dis- +‎ possession.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /dɪspəˈzɛʃn̩/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Noun

dispossession (countable and uncountable, plural dispossessions)

  1. The act of dispossessing someone of something.
    • 2024 September 30, Michael Doran, “EXCEPTIONALISM AND ASSIMILATIONISM IN FEDERAL INDIAN LAW”, in Stanford Law School‎[1], volume 20, number 2, page 267‎[2], archived from the original on 24 February 2025:
      At times, the assimilationist paradigm has facilitated the physical dispossession of Native lands and the suppression or eradication of Native institutions, culture, and identity by the political branches of the federal government.
  2. The casting out of an evil spirit that has possessed someone; exorcism.
    • 1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society, published 2012, page 462:
      There had been a series of such dispossessions since the beginning of Elizabeth's reign involving many clergy, particularly those of vehement Protestant sympathies.
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