Synonyms for blackball
- verb
- noun
Definitions
- v. 1
To ostracize.
- v. 2
To vote against, especially in an exclusive organization.
If you're not from a moneyed, well-connected family, you can count on getting blackballed from the fraternity.
- n. 1
A rejection; a vote against admitting someone.
Forms
- Plural
- blackballs → ostracisms, barrings, niggerballs…
- Past participle
- blackballed
e.g. blackballed → ostracized, banned, banished, excommunicated…
Example sentences
- ban Saudi Arabia will remove the ban on women driving.
- banish I've tried to banish the memory of him crying.
- boycott She tried to persuade him to organize a boycott.
- blacklist I considered doing something like blocking edits based on a blacklist.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| blackball | steady | |
| ban | steady | |
| banish | rising | |
| excommunicate | steady | |
| boycott | falling |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- ban1
- 4 letters
- veto2, shun1
- 5 letters
- black1
- 6 letters
- banish2
- 7 letters
- boycott2, barring2
- 8 letters
- negative3
- 9 letters
- blacklist2, ostracism4, ostracize3, proscribe2, ostracise, blackbean
- 10 letters
- niggerball
- 13 letters
- excommunicate5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (veto2 = 2 syllables).