lone·ly

(lōn′lē)

adj. lone·li·er, lone·li·est

a. Dejected by the awareness of being alone. See Synonyms at alone.

b. Producing such dejection: the loneliest night of the week.

2. Without others of a similar kind; lone; solitary: "a lonely band of lawyers up against the might of the American legal establishment" (Nick Kotz).

3. Unfrequented by people; desolate: a lonely crossroads.

lone′li·ly adv.

lone′li·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	loneliness - the state of being alone in solitary isolation solitariness isolation - a state of separation between persons or groups
	2.	loneliness - sadness resulting from being forsaken or abandoned forlornness, desolation sadness, unhappiness - emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
	3.	loneliness - a disposition toward being alone aloneness, lonesomeness, solitariness friendlessness - being without friends reclusiveness - a disposition to prefer seclusion or isolation disposition, temperament - your usual mood; "he has a happy disposition"

loneliness

noun solitude, isolation, desolation, seclusion, aloneness, dreariness, solitariness, forlornness, lonesomeness, desertedness Deep down I have a fear of loneliness.

Quotations
"Alone, alone, all, all alone,"
"Alone on a wide wide sea!"
"And never a saint took pity on"
"My soul in agony" [Samuel Taylor Coleridge The Ancient Mariner]

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

loneliness

noun

The quality or state of being alone:

aloneness, isolation, singleness, solitariness, solitude.

Translations

وِحْدَةٌوِحْدَه، عُزْلَه

samota

ensomhed

yksinäisyys

usamljenost

einmanaleiki

solitudine

孤独

고독

osamelost

ensamhet

ความเหงา

yalnızlık

sự cô đơn

孤独寂寞

loneliness

[ˈləʊnlɪnɪs] N → soledad f

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

loneliness

[ˈləʊnlinəs] n → solitude f, isolement m

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

loneliness

n → Einsamkeit f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

loneliness

[ˈləʊnlɪnɪs] n → solitudine f

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

lone

(ləun) adjective

solitary, without companions, by itself etc. a lone figure on the beach.

ˈlonely adjective

1. lacking or wanting companionship. Aren't you lonely, living by yourself?

2. (of a place) far away from busy places, having few people. a lonely island.

ˈloneliness noun

ˈlonesome adjective

(especially American) lonely; solitary. She feels lonesome when her brothers are at school.

ˈlonesomeness noun

loneliness

→ وِحْدَةٌ samota ensomhed Einsamkeit μοναξιά soledad yksinäisyys solitude usamljenost solitudine 孤独 고독 eenzaamheid ensomhet samotność solidão одиночество ensamhet ความเหงา yalnızlık sự cô đơn 孤独

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Then, and quite suddenly, he became aware of loneliness. He sat down to consider, listening to the silence of the forest and perturbed by it.

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The loneliness of the man is slowly being borne in upon me.

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One small white cloud Threading the vasty vault of heaven recalls My heart unto her loneliness. I sail Between two banks, where heavy boughs enlace, Whose verdurous luxuriance wakes once more My many griefs.

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And, to cap the climax of their base ingratitude and fiendish barbarity, my grandmother, who was now very old, having outlived my old master and all his children, having seen the beginning and end of all of them, and her present owners finding she was of but little value, her frame already racked with the pains of old age, and complete helplessness fast stealing over her once active limbs, they took her to the woods, built her a little hut, put up a little mud-chimney, and then made her welcome to the privilege of support- ing herself there in perfect loneliness; thus virtually turning her out to die!

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And they may unfold a tale of narrow escape, of steady ill-luck, of high winds and heavy weather, of ice, of interminable calms or endless head-gales; a tale of difficulties overcome, of adversity defied by a small knot of men upon the great loneliness of the sea; a tale of resource, of courage - of helplessness, perhaps.

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To Carlyle, who hated noises, who all his life long waged war against howling dogs and "demon" fowls, the silence and loneliness were delightful.

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An atmosphere of loneliness pervaded the spot, which caught suddenly at both men as they strode toward the cabin.

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But Dorothea thought with deep pity of the loneliness which must have come upon Rosamond from the suspicions cast on her husband; and there would surely be help in the manifestation of respect for Lydgate and sympathy with her.

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The moon had not yet risen, and Ruth, gazing into the starry vault of the sky and exchanging no speech with Martin, experienced a sudden feeling of loneliness. She glanced at him.

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There seemed to me pathos in his loneliness. Had some one spun the top with him, it would have vanished; and presently, no doubt at the bidding of an oath I could not hear, he hurriedly thrust the top into his pocket, and once more joined the straining group of men.

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Do you wish, then, to persuade me that your whole existence has been passed in loneliness and want and gloom, with never a cheering word to help you, nor a seat in a friend's chimney-corner?

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It would not surprise you if, as you came near seeking for an opening in the reef, it vanished suddenly from your view, and nothing met your gaze but the blue loneliness of the Pacific.

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