Coventry

Phrases

send someone to Coventry

chiefly British refuse to associate with or speak to someone: some people ignore and send to Coventry individuals they disapprove of

[ mid 18th century: sometimes said to stem from the extreme unpopularity of soldiers stationed in Coventry, who were cut off socially by the citizens, or because Royalist prisoners were sent there during the English Civil War, the city being staunchly Parliamentarian]