Definition

1. Verb:
   • To expel or suspend a student from a university, particularly in a British context: The primary meaning refers to the disciplinary action of temporarily or permanently removing a student from their studies at a college or university.

Usage

• This term is specifically used in the context of higher education institutions, especially in the UK.
• It is a formal administrative action, often the result of a disciplinary hearing or serious academic misconduct.
• It typically implies a forced departure from the university, distinguishing it from a voluntary withdrawal.

Examples

• Verb:
  • The university decided to send down the student for cheating on the final examinations.
  • He was sent down from Oxford after failing his exams for the second time.

Advanced Usage

• While the core meaning involves suspension or expulsion from university, the phrase can sometimes carry a more general, informal connotation of causing someone to go to a lower place or state, though this is less common in formal contexts.
  • The news of the economic crash sent down share prices across the board. (This usage is more metaphorical and not the primary definition.)

Variants and Related Words

• Sent-down (adj): Describing the state of having been expelled.
  • He was a sent-down student trying to rebuild his career.
• Sending-down (n): The act or process of expelling.
  • The sending-down was a shock to the entire college.

Synonyms

• Expel: To force someone to leave an institution permanently.
• Suspend: To bar someone from attending for a specific period, which may be temporary.
• Rusticate: A formal term, especially in British universities, meaning to suspend a student.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Send away: To order someone to leave a place. (Less specific to academia.)
• Kick out: An informal synonym meaning to expel or eject someone.

Related Idioms

• Get the boot: A very informal idiom meaning to be expelled or fired.
  • He got the boot from university for his behavior.
• Be shown the door: To be told to leave, often in disgrace.

Verb

1. suspend temporarily from college or university, in England