disgorge

Disgorge is a verb with several related meanings centered on the release or expulsion of contents from a cavity, vessel, or system. In medical and physiological contexts, it denotes the act of expelling stomach or throat contents, commonly described as vomiting or regurgitation. It can also describe the discharge of liquids or solids from a container or through a conduit, or the sudden release of material from a natural channel, such as a river discharging its waters into a bay or a geyser expelling steam and water.

The term is used in broader, figurative senses as well, to describe the forceful emission of substances or refuse from a source. For example, a river or a stream may disgorge its load into a lower channel, or a facility might disgorge cargo at a port.

In law and finance, disgorgement refers to a remedy that requires a person who has profited from wrongdoing to surrender those profits. It is intended to prevent unjust enrichment and to deter misconduct; it is not a punishment in itself but a civil remedy. The amount disgorged is typically the net profits or ill-gotten gains attributable to the unlawful activity, sometimes with interest, and the procedure is used in enforcement actions by regulatory authorities.

Etymology: the word derives from dis- meaning away or apart and gorge, with historical forms traced to Old French desgorgier. In practice, the term appears as both a verb (disgorge) and a noun (disgorgement) in contemporary usage.