You searched for: “exorcism
exorcism (s), exorcisms (pl) (nouns)
1. The act of driving out, or warding off, demons, or evil spirits, from persons, places, or things, which are believed to be possessed or infested by them, or are liable to become victims or instruments of their malice: "In recent years, there has been a revival of the practice of exorcism and an increasing demand for the services of exorcists by troubled individuals."
2. The act of casting out demons or evil spirits in a ritual designed to free individuals from evil influences "A formula used during an exorcism and in some churches, exorcism is practiced prior to baptism."
3. Something that a person can do that helps him or her to stop thinking about a bad experience or memory: "The psychiatrist helped his patient to get rid of the terrible depressions she had as a result of the death of her young daughter by a sex offender by using a form of exorcisms that included hypnotism and positive thinking exercises."
4. Etymology: from 1395, a calling up or driving out of spirits; borrowed from Late Latin exorcismus, from Greek exorkismos, from exorkizein, "bind by oath," from ex-, "out of" + horkizein, "cause to swear", from horkos, "oath".
This entry is located in the following units: exorcis- + (page 1) -ism, -ismus (page 21)