verbannen
to banish
To force someone to leave their country or a specific region; to send into exile.
EXAMPLE
Der König verbannte seinen Gegner aus dem Reich.
The king banished his opponent from the realm.
verbannen
to banish / ban
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Meanings
verbannen
to ban
To completely remove, prohibit, or exclude something undesirable from a specific area.
EXAMPLE
Die Schule hat Mobiltelefone aus dem Unterricht verbannt.
The school has banned mobile phones from lessons.
verbannen
to banish
To consciously push a thought, feeling, or memory out of one's awareness.
EXAMPLE
Er versuchte, die schrecklichen Bilder aus seinem Gedächtnis zu verbannen.
He tried to banish the terrible images from his memory.
Usage tips
Inseparable verb
'Verbannen' (to banish / ban) is an inseparable verb. The prefix 'ver-' remains firmly attached to the verb 'bannen' in all sentence forms and is not placed at the end of the sentence.
EXAMPLE
Er verbannte alle negativen Gedanken.
He banished all negative thoughts.
Preposition 'aus'
'Verbannen' (to banish / ban) is very often used with the preposition 'aus' and the dative. This construction describes the place or area from which someone or something is removed.
EXAMPLE
Der Spieler wurde aus der Mannschaft verbannt.
The player was banished from the team.
Typical collocations
In the sense of 'entfernen' (to remove), the verb is often used for rules or objects. Typical combinations are 'Plastiktüten verbannen' (to ban plastic bags), 'Werbung verbannen' (to ban advertising), or 'Gefahrstoffe verbannen' (to ban hazardous substances).
EXAMPLE
Viele Supermärkte verbannen Einweg-Plastiktüten aus ihren Läden.
Many supermarkets are banning single-use plastic bags from their stores.
Figurative meaning
The verb is also used metaphorically for thoughts, feelings, or memories. The typical structure is 'etwas aus seinem Gedächtnis verbannen' (to banish something from one's memory) or 'aus seinen Gedanken verbannen' (to banish from one's thoughts).
EXAMPLE
Sie versuchte, die Erinnerung an den Streit aus ihren Gedanken zu verbannen.
She tried to banish the memory of the argument from her thoughts.
Compare with
verbannen vs verdrängen
to repress / displace
Both words can refer to keeping a distressing memory away. Verdrängen happens unconsciously as a psychological defense, whereas verbannen refers to a conscious decision. If someone intentionally removes the memory from their thoughts, they verbannen it; if it happens unnoticed, they verdrängen it.
verbannen
Nach dem Unfall verbannt Nora die belastende Erinnerung bewusst aus ihren Gedanken.
After the accident, Nora consciously banished the distressing memory from her thoughts.
verdrängen
Nach dem Unfall verdrängt Nora die belastende Erinnerung, ohne es zu merken.
After the accident, Nora repressed the distressing memory without realizing it.
In real life
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