ausschließen

Ausschließen is a German verb with several related meanings centered on preventing participation, access, or inclusion. The core sense is to prevent something from occurring or someone from taking part, or to deny a possibility. It can also mean to physically shut out someone or something from a place or group.

Grammatically, ausschließen is a separable-prefix verb. In the present tense you typically see the prefix at the end of the clause: ich schließe aus; du schließt aus; er schließt aus; wir schließen aus; ihr schließt aus; sie schließen aus. The past participle is ausgeschlossen, and with haben you form perfect: er hat ausgeschlossen. In the sense of denying a possibility, one can say: Wir schließen eine Teilnahme aus. In the sense of expelling someone, one speaks of excluding a person: Der Verein schließt ihn aus dem Kreis der Mitglieder aus. In reflexive or extended uses, one may also encounter phrases like jemanden aus einer Gruppe ausschließen or aus dem Wettbewerb ausschließen.

Nounally, the related noun Ausschluss denotes exclusion, ban, or disqualification. Common compounds include Ausschlusskriterium (exclusion criterion) and Ausschlussfrist (statutory exclusion period).

Usage notes: ausschließen often contrasts with einschließen, which means include or admit. A second sense of schließend is aus etwas schließen, meaning to deduce or infer from something (Ich schließe daraus, dass...). This sense uses aus as a prepositional element rather than as the separable prefix.

In summary, ausschließen covers removing participation, denying a possibility, or physically excluding someone or something, with common everyday and legal-adjacent usages.