expunge
ik-SPUNJ
/ɪkˈspʌndʒ/
To erase or remove completely, especially an item from a legal record or memory.
Expunging a record renders it legally non-existent in the eyes of the law, as if the arrest or conviction never occurred.
The story behind the word. From Latin 'expungere' (to blot out, erase). In Roman wax writing tablets, scribes marked points or dots ('pungere') above words that were meant to be deleted or struck out.
Word relationships
- erase: Erase is general, while expunge specifically refers to official or legal records.
- obliterate: Obliterate implies physical destruction; expunge emphasizes legal or textual removal.
- record: Record means to document or register permanently.
- inscribe: Inscribe means to write or carve permanently into record.
Commonly confused with
- sponge: Though phonetically similar, sponge means absorbing liquid, whereas expunge means completely erasing records.
Word family
- expungement (noun): The act or process of erasing a legal record.
- expunction (noun): The formal legal deletion of records.
Collocations
- expunge a record
- expunge conviction
- order to expunge
- expunge from memory
Idioms & expressions
- expunge from the record
Example sentences
- "After completing the diversion program, she successfully petitioned the court to expunge her youthful arrest record." Legal petition
- "The court ordered the offensive remarks to be expunged from the official transcript." Formal prose
Memory hook
EX-PUNGE = Use a SPONGE to wipe OUT (ex) the legal record completely. Expunge = Wipe the record clean.
When not to use
Do not use for temporary hiding or sealing of records; expungement is total destruction or erasure.
Fun facts
- In ancient Roman record-keeping, pricking holes through parchment with a needle was the official method to mark canceled debts.
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