Mrs. Hoxha is now a virtual pariah in her country.

The assertions have made Mr. Tudjman a virtual diplomatic pariah, traveling outside Croatia only to negotiations elsewhere in Europe with other leaders of the former Yugoslavia.

On the other hand, Wayne Gretzky is a virtual pariah.

The Bush Administration's overtures notwithstanding, the Government has become a virtual pariah in the world.

Russell's behaviour on set, including a row with Chayefsky himself, caused him to become a virtual pariah in Hollywood.

And it has turned both into virtual pariahs inside the Vatican.

Nearly all have done so, ending a 15-year war that killed tens of thousands, deeply polarized Turkish society, and turned the country into a virtual pariah in the West.

So in Wendy Wasserstein's "Elements of Style," the author's well-educated stand-in is a virtual pariah.

On the road, Mr. Cooper is a virtual pariah.

The difference is that General Musharraf is riding high internationally, having transformed his image from a virtual pariah to an ally of the West following his post-Sept.