Dictionary

defenestrate en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /dəˈfɛnɪstɹeɪt/ (US)
• /dɪˈfɛnɪstɹeɪt/ (UK)
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h₁ Proto-Indo-European *déh₁ Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Etruscan *𐌚𐌍𐌄𐌔𐌕𐌓𐌀 (*fnestra)bor.? Latin fenestra Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *-Hō Proto-Indo-European *-tiHō Proto-Italic *-tiō Latin -tiō Latin -ātiō New Latin dēfenestrātiōder. English defenestrationbf. English defenestrate First attested in 1904; back-formation from defenestration on the basis of -ate (verb-forming suffix), from New Latin dē- (“out”) + fenestra (“window”) + -ātiō (“-ation”).

Meanings

1. (transitive) To eject or throw (someone or something) from or through a window.
   • I defenestrated a clock to see if time flies! 1998 September 25, Lane Smith, quoted in "TFK Q&A: Lane Smith and Jon Scieszka", in Time for Kids
2. (transitive) To throw out; to remove or dismiss (someone) from a position of power or authority.
   • The cultural historians of science 'feel the need to defenestrate science, or at least take it off its pedestal' (Pumfrey. Rossi & Slawinski 1991. p. 3). 1998, Barry J. Fraser, Kenneth George Tobin, International Handbook of Science Education, volume 2:
   • Ever since he helped to defenestrate Richard Nixon in 1974, Mr Woodward has been a sort of super-reporter ... 2001, The Economist, volume 381, numbers 8498-8501, page 42:
   • According to the guidebooks, they do it so strenuously that women would very much like to defenestrate the custom. 2004, Mary Carey, Kim Berquist, Writing from a Small Country: Anthology of the Creative Writing Club, Luxembourg:
3. (humorous, slang, transitive) To remove a Windows operating system from (a computer).
   • This posting was written on a Windows 95 PC, Defenestrate it immediately. Install Linux. :-) 1998 December 17, Darren Salt <news@youmustbejoking.demon.com.uk>, "Re: Coding speccy games in the good 'ole days", message-ID <48B60EA729%news@youmustbejoking.demon.com.uk>, comp.sys.sinclair, Usenet http://google.com/group/comp.sys.sinclair/msg/8b00481a8be589d2
   • 2007 May 16, Richard Stallman, speech, Free Software and Beyond: Human Rights in the Use of Software and Other Published Works, Now of course people who want freedom shouldn't use Windows at all, you've got to defenestrate your computer, which means either you throw Windows out of the computer, or you throw the computer out the window.
   • ◦ Enable one-click uninstalls of unwanted OS and application features with a Defenestrate icon. 2001 July 21, "Packet Rat" (pseudonym), "Judge Rat calls for a Microsoft defenestration", on GCN: Government Computer News

Forms

Deriveds

defenestration · autodefenestrate · defenestrator

Relateds

autodefenestrate

Translations (24)

fr défenestrer (eject from a window) · pt jogar da janela (eject from a window) · cy diffenestru (eject from a window) · pl defenestrować (eject from a window) · sv defenestrera (eject from a window) · nl defenestreren (eject from a window) · pl wyrzucić przez okno (eject from a window) · apc زت من الشباك (eject from a window) · fi heittää ikkunasta ulos (eject from a window) · it defenestrare (eject from a window) · lt aidinti (eject from a window) · ru вы́бросить из окна́ (eject from a window) · ru выбра́сывать из окна́ (eject from a window) · es defenestrar (eject from a window) · tl itapon (eject from a window) · ru выки́дывать из окна́ (eject from a window) · de defenestrieren (eject from a window) · ru вы́кинуть из окна́ (eject from a window) · ar يُلْقِي مِن النّافِذَةِ (eject from a window) · is henda út um glugga (eject from a window) · de aus dem Fenster werfen (eject from a window) · pt defenestrar (eject from a window) · tl itiwalag (to dismiss) · ca defenestrar (eject from a window)