exodus

noun

ex·o·dus ˈek-sə-dəs

ˈeg-zə-

Synonyms of exodus next

capitalized : the mainly narrative second book of canonical Jewish and Christian Scripture see Bible Table

: a mass departure : emigration

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Don't Leave Without the History of Exodos

The Biblical book of Exodus describes the departure of the Israelites from Egypt, so it's no surprise that the word exodus, uncapitalized, has come to refer more generally to any mass departure. Exodus was adopted into English (via Latin) from the Greek word Exodos, which literally means “the road out.” Exodos was formed by combining the prefix ex-, meaning “out of,” and hodos, meaning “road” or “way.” Indeed, many roads led out of hodos into English; other hodos descendants include episode, method, odometer, and period. While exodus is occasionally encountered in reference to an individual’s leaving (e.g., “his/her/their exodus”), such usage is likely to raise the eyebrows of editors who feel it should only refer to the departure en masse of a large group of people, as when novelist Nnedi Okorafor writes in her science fiction novel Lagoon (2015): “Everyone was trying to get somewhere, be it a church, a bar, home or out of Lagos. Then there was the exodus of people … to the parts of the city that had the least chance of flooding if the water rose too high.”

Examples of exodus in a Sentence

the mass exodus from the cities for the beaches and the mountains on most summer weekends

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

Although the former Soviet republic signed a deal with the EU in 2014 to forge closer political and economic ties, years of rampant corruption and lack of reform hindered development, and an exodus of hundreds of thousands of citizens sought better futures abroad. —

Stephen McGrath and Nicolae Dumitrache, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024 Threats and scrutiny often linked to false claims of voter fraud have contributed to a mass exodus of local election officials in recent years, raising alarms about understaffed and inexperienced teams left to handle the process — and to face potential new threats. —

Julia Mueller, The Hill, 2 Nov. 2024 Photo: Little Vignettes Photo/Shutterstock The exodus is more annoying to the people further down the meat-packing food chain who have been driving to pick up from wholesalers here for a while — 120 years, in the case of Pino’s Prime Meats of Soho. —

Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 28 Oct. 2024 The latest survey data from RE/MAX would suggest that despite strong economic growth and a multi-billion dollar surplus, a rampant decline in affordability could spur the next great exodus of Irish residents. —

Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 24 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for exodus