ethnic cleansing

noun

: the expulsion, imprisonment, or killing of an ethnic minority by a dominant majority in order to achieve ethnic homogeneity

Examples of ethnic cleansing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
To be blunt, the work of ICE is the work of ethnic cleansing. — Sarah Jeong, The Verge, 1 Mar. 2026 The White House has built a massive secret police force tasked with ethnic cleansing. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026 Others are children of families who were displaced by ethnic cleansing. — Arminka Helic, Time, 30 June 2026 But there’s a sense that there is a deliberate ethnic cleansing of the Shia populations in the south. — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 9 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for ethnic cleansing

Word History

First Known Use

1991, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ethnic cleansing was in 1991

Browse Nearby Words

ethnically
ethnic cleansing
ethnicism
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ethnic cleansing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethnic%20cleansing. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on ethnic cleansing

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about ethnic cleansing

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