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solitary

adjective
sol·​i·​tary | \ ˈsä-lə-ˌter-ē How to pronounce solitary (audio) \

Definition of solitary

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1a : being, living, or going alone or without companions
b : saddened by isolation
2 : unfrequented, desolate a solitary seashore
3a : taken, passed, or performed without companions a solitary ramble
b : keeping a prisoner apart from others solitary confinement
4 : being at once single and isolated a solitary example
5a : occurring singly and not as part of a group or cluster flowers terminal and solitary
b : not gregarious, colonial, social, or compound solitary bees

solitary

noun
plural solitaries

Definition of solitary (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : one who lives or seeks to live a solitary life : recluse
2 : solitary confinement in prison put him in solitary
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Other Words from solitary

Adjective

solitarily \ ˌsä-​lə-​ˈter-​ə-​lē How to pronounce solitarily (audio) \ adverb
solitariness \ ˈsä-​lə-​ˌter-​ē-​nəs How to pronounce solitariness (audio) \ noun

Synonyms for solitary

Synonyms: Adjective

alone, lone, one, one-off, only, singular, sole, special, sui generis, unique

Synonyms: Noun

anchorite, eremite, hermit, isolate, recluse

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Choose the Right Synonym for solitary

Adjective

alone, solitary, lonely, lonesome, lone, forlorn, desolate mean isolated from others. alone stresses the objective fact of being by oneself with slighter notion of emotional involvement than most of the remaining terms. everyone needs to be alone sometimes solitary may indicate isolation as a chosen course glorying in the calm of her solitary life but more often it suggests sadness and a sense of loss. left solitary by the death of his wife lonely adds to solitary a suggestion of longing for companionship. felt lonely and forsaken lonesome heightens the suggestion of sadness and poignancy. an only child often leads a lonesome life lone may replace lonely or lonesome but typically is as objective as alone. a lone robin pecking at the lawn forlorn stresses dejection, woe, and listlessness at separation from one held dear. a forlorn lost child desolate implies inconsolable grief at loss or bereavement. desolate after her brother's death

Examples of solitary in a Sentence

Adjective

 He took a solitary walk on the beach. A solitary house stood on top of the cliff. Most cats are solitary creatures. He's a very solitary man.

Noun

 The prisoner was kept in solitary. weary of European civilization, the painter Paul Gauguin famously abandoned France to become a solitary in the South Seas
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

 The court ordered him held in pre-trial detention for four weeks, two of which will be in solitary confinement. — Washington Post, "Suspect in Norway mosque attack smirks in court appearance," 12 Aug. 2019 The court ordered him held in pre-trial detention for four weeks, two of which will be in solitary confinement. — NBC News, "Suspect in Norway mosque attack smirks through bruised face in court," 12 Aug. 2019 The Special Housing Unit, where Epstein spent weeks awaiting trial, is federal prisons’ terminology for what most people know as solitary confinement. — Melissa Gira Grant, The New Republic, "Jeffrey Epstein and the Myth of “Justice” in America," 12 Aug. 2019 She was being treated there after a suicide attempt on July 27 while in solitary confinement. — Jacob Beltran, ExpressNews.com, "Man accused of killing wife dies in apparent suicide in jail," 6 Aug. 2019 Rightfully so, she was eventually arrested and placed in solitary confinement. — Blair Donovan, Country Living, "50 Vampire Names You'll Want to Sink Your Teeth Into This Halloween," 23 July 2019 Wary of his history of escaping from Mexican prisons, U.S. authorities have kept him in solitary confinement in an ultra-secure unit at a Manhattan jail and under close guard at his appearances at the Brooklyn courthouse where his case unfolded. — Tom Hays, Anchorage Daily News, "Drug lord Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán gets life sentence in U.S. federal court," 17 July 2019 Since his conviction, Guzman’s legal team has filed requests for better prison conditions at the MCC, where he is kept in solitary confinement 23 hours a day in his 10 x 8 cell. — Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, "Cartel kingpin ‘El Chapo’ sentenced to life in prison," 17 July 2019 Wary of his history of escaping from Mexican prisons, U.S. authorities have kept him in solitary confinement at a Manhattan jail and under close guard at his appearances at the Brooklyn courthouse where his case unfolded. — Tom Hays, Houston Chronicle, "Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' faces sentencing today," 17 July 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

 SOLITARY: INSIDE RED ONION STATE PRISON (2017) 10 p.m. on HBO. — Kathryn Shattuck, New York Times, "What’s on TV Monday: ‘Finding Dory’ and ‘Gender Revolution: A Journey With Katie Couric’," 6 Feb. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'solitary.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of solitary

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for solitary

Adjective

Middle English, solitarie, from Anglo-French, from Latin solitarius, from solitas aloneness, from solus alone

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More Definitions for solitary

solitary

adjective
How to pronounce solitary (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of solitary

: without anyone or anything else : not involving or including anyone or anything else
: done by a person who is alone

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