blackball

transitive-verb
UK: /ˈblæk.bɔːl/
US: /ˈblæk.bɔːl/

  1. To vote against someone or something, especially secretly, to prevent them from succeeding or being accepted.

    1. They tried to blackball him from the club. [ ] [ ]
    2. The committee decided to blackball her application due to her controversial views. [ ] [ ]

Synonyms

ban exclude ostracize veto reject
blackball noun

  1. A vote against someone, especially a secret one, preventing their admission or acceptance.

    1. He received one blackball, so was not admitted. [ ] [ ]
    2. The blackball effectively ended her chances of joining the exclusive society. [ ] [ ]

Frequently Asked Questions

The phonetic transcription of "blackball" is /ˈblæk.bɔːl/ in British English and /ˈblæk.bɔːl/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "blackball": ban, exclude, ostracize, veto, reject.

Example usage of "blackball": "They tried to blackball him from the club.". More examples on the page.