| the elimination of an unwanted ethnic group or groups from a society, as by genocide or forced emigration. |
| ethnic cleansing n. The systematic elimination of an ethnic group or groups from a region or society, as by deportation, forced emigration, or genocide. |
A euphemism to describe the forceful removal or genocide of minority ethnic groups (see ethnicity) during the breakup of Yugoslavia. It was used mainly to describe the Serbs' attacks on Muslims in Bosnia and Albanians in Kosovo. (See Slobodan Milosevic and Kosovo War.)