expatriate 1 of 3

noun

ek-ˈspā-trē-ət How to pronounce expatriate (audio)
Definition of expatriatenext
as in refugee
a person forced to emigrate for political reasons while in exile, the deposed king was accompanied by a small band of loyal expatriates

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

expatriate

2 of 3

verb

ek-ˈspā-trē-ˌāt How to pronounce expatriate (audio)
as in to exile
to force to leave a country members of the deposed dictator's once-feared political party were expatriated as well

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

expatriate

3 of 3

adjective

as in immigrant

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of expatriate
Noun
It’s loosely based on an actual Chilean colony where German expatriates tortured prisoners at the behest of General Pinochet. — Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 1 July 2026 The Gulf states are home to several million Indian and Pakistani expatriates, and the region supplies much of the oil and gas on which both nations depend. — Michael Kugelman, Time, 26 June 2026
Verb
An August survey by Remitly found that having a better quality of life is the top reason Americans want to expatriate. — Kathleen Wong, USA Today, 20 Oct. 2025 During the ensuing chaos that followed, Charles fled the country, secretly expatriating to Europe. — Hazlitt, 18 June 2025
Adjective
Wolter, as quixotic expatriate Russian Countess Lily, channels peak era Carol Burnett in this raucous comedy duet. — Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 9 June 2026 His post oversees seven Western states and one of the largest Israeli expatriate populations in the world. — Asaf Elia-Shalev, Sun Sentinel, 4 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for expatriate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expatriate
  1. refugee
  2. exile
  3. immigrant
  4. banish
  5. foreign
Noun
  • More than 6 million Afghans fled to neighboring Iran and Pakistan, but both those countries have kicked out nearly all their Afghan refugees in recent years—even Afghans who arrived back in 1979, during the Soviet invasion.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Harborview is the safety net hospital in the Seattle region for non-English speaking refugees and immigrants.
    — Cara Kelly, USA Today, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of refugee
Verb
  • Located in Jerusalem, al-Wasiti became, for years, the place to visit, empowering Palestinian artists exiled all over the world to return to a fountain of unity and belonging.
    — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • This thriller centers on disgraced or damaged agents of Britain’s MI6 intelligence service who have been exiled to a remote Greek island.
    — Monitor reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of exile
Adjective
  • In the centuries that followed, the Mission went from Mexican farmland to immigrant stronghold as waves of working-class European families moved into the neighborhood following the Gold Rush in the mid-1800s.
    — Marissa J. Lang, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026
  • An immigrant visa allows someone to travel to the United States and seek admission as a permanent resident.
    — María Luisa Paúl, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of immigrant
Verb
  • Any doubts over whether that deal would be concluded would have been banished as soon as Riad was taken off.
    — Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Plus a few other wackadoodles banished from labels, serving out their sentences in our nuthouse.
    — Jeff Rabhan, Rolling Stone, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of banish
Adjective
  • More than 400 foreign nationals are among the 579 tourists missing in the rugged mountainous region, which is popular with pilgrims and trekkers.
    — Jennifer Jett, NBC news, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The brothers Tate were arrested by federal marshals in Miami last month, after years of being investigated by several foreign authorities.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of foreign

Browse Nearby Words

expatiating
expatriate
expatriated
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Expatriate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expatriate. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All