solitary
nounadjectivenouncommon in dialogue
- United Kingdom//ˈsɒlɪt(ə)ɹi//
- United States//ˈsɑlɪˌtɛɹi//
One who lives alone, or in solitude; an anchorite, hermit or recluse.
noun
- 1
One who lives alone, or in solitude; an anchorite, hermit or recluse.
He brooded and intrigued fantastically. He was becoming one of the big-time solitaries. And he wasn't meant to be a solitary. He was meant to be in active life, a social creature.
- 2
The state of being solitary; solitude
You must wonder why I'm relentless and all strung out/I'm consumed by the chill of solitary
- 3
Variant of solitary confinementEllipsis of solitary confinement.
The prisoners who started the riot were moved to solitary.
Etymology
From Middle English solitarie, borrowed from Latin sōlitārius. Doublet of solitaire.
adjective
- 1
Living or being by oneself; alone; having no companion present
The solitary, lumbering trolls of Scandinavian mythology would sometimes be turned to stone by exposure to sunlight. Barack Obama is hoping that several measures announced on June 4th will have a similarly paralysing effect on their modern incarnation, the patent troll.
Though we don’t all reach nirvana when we swim, swimming may well be that last refuge from connectivity — and, for some, the only way to find the solitary self.
Tilling my own grave to keep me level Jam another dragon down the hole Digging to the rhythm and the echo of a solitary siren One that pushes me along and leaves me so Desperate and ravenous
- 2
Performed, passed, or endured alone.
a solitary journey
a solitary life
- 3
Not much visited or frequented; remote from society
a solitary residence or place
- 4
Not inhabited or occupied; without signs of inhabitants or occupation; desolate; deserted
the solitary desert
How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people!
Eldridge closed the despatch-case with a snap and, rising briskly, walked down the corridor to his solitary table in the dining-car.
- 5
Gloomy; dismal, because of not being inhabited.
- 6
Single; individual; sole.
a solitary example
That makes it almost half a season with just a solitary win, and Mark Hughes' side will reflect on a costly capitulation at the end of the first half after fine goals from Stuart Armstrong and Cedric Soares had seemingly put them in control.
- 7
Not associated with others of the same kind.
noun
- 1
Variant of solitairearchaicArchaic form of solitaire (“Rodrigues solitaire”).
Forms
- plural
- solitaries
solitary · One who lives alone, or in solitude; an anchorite, hermit or recluse.
solitude · Aloneness; the state of being alone, solitary, or by oneself.solo · A piece of music for one performer.Solo · A surname