Definition

Verb: * To throw someone or something out of a window.

Usage

The verb "defenestrate" is used to describe the specific act of ejecting a person or object through a window. It is a formal, often historical or political, term. * The angry mob threatened to defenestrate the corrupt official. * During the riot, several pieces of furniture were defenestrated.

Advanced Usage

• Historical/Political Context: The term is famously associated with the 1618 Defenestration of Prague, a pivotal event that sparked the Thirty Years' War, where imperial officials were thrown from a castle window.
• Figurative Use: In modern contexts, particularly in business or politics, "defenestrate" can be used figuratively to mean removing someone from a position of power or authority in a sudden and forceful manner.
  • The board of directors voted to defenestrate the CEO after the scandal.

Variants and Related Words

• Defenestration (noun): The act of throwing someone or something out of a window.
  • The defenestration of the envoys was an act of war.

Synonyms

• Eject
• Expel
• Oust (primarily in the figurative sense)

Related Idioms

• "To be shown the window": An informal idiom meaning to be dismissed or thrown out, related to the concept of defenestration.

Verb

1. throw through or out of the window
   • The rebels stormed the palace and defenestrated the President