isolate
Americanverb (used with object)
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isolates,
present (3rd person singular)
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isolated,
past participle, past
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isolating
present participle
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to set or place apart; detach or separate so as to be alone.
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Medicine/Medical. to keep (an infected person) from contact with noninfected persons; quarantine.
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Chemistry, Bacteriology. to obtain (a substance or microorganism) in an uncombined or pure state.
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Electricity. to insulate.
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Television. to single out (a person, action, etc.) for a camera closeup.
noun
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a person, thing, or group that is set apart or isolated, as for purposes of study.
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Psychology. a person, often shy or lacking in social skills, who avoids the company of others and has no friends within a group.
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Biology. an inbreeding population that is isolated from similar populations by physiological, behavioral, or geographic barriers.
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Also called language isolate. Linguistics. a language with no demonstrable genetic relationship, as Basque.
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something that has been isolated, as a by-product in a manufacturing process.
an isolate of soy flour.
adjective
verb
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to place apart; cause to be alone
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med to quarantine (a person or animal) having or suspected of having a contagious disease
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to obtain (a compound) in an uncombined form
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to obtain pure cultures of (bacteria, esp those causing a particular disease)
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electronics to prevent interaction between (circuits, components, etc); insulate
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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isolabilitynoun
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isolatornoun
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reisolateverb (used with object)
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unisolateverb (used with object)
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isolableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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isolatesimple
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isolatessimple
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have isolatedperfect
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has isolatedperfect
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am isolatingprogressive
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are isolatingprogressive
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is isolatingprogressive
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have been isolatingperfect progressive
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has been isolatingperfect progressive
Past
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isolatedsimple
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had isolatedperfect
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was isolatingprogressive
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were isolatingprogressive
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had been isolatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of isolate
First recorded in 1800–10; back formation from isolated
Explanation
When you remove or set apart one thing from others, you isolate it. You could isolate yourself from people by living in a remote hut or, if you're a biologist, you could isolate a chromosome. The verb isolate comes from the adjective isolated, which comes from the Latin insulatas, meaning “made into an island.” You may have heard the John Donne quote, “No man is an island.” Donne was claiming that no matter how much you might try to isolate yourself from the rest of humanity, in the end people are all connected to one another. Humanity’s need for connectedness may, in fact, be illustrated by the fact that jailers frequently isolate criminals as punishment.
Vocabulary lists containing isolate
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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List 15
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Vocabulary from "Community is the 'killer app' missing from virtual reality" by Dmitri Williams
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Analysts say the US plan to isolate Iran would require unlikely cooperation from trading partner China, which has defended its cooperation with Tehran and vowed to safeguard its interests.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
Flowers has always been careful to isolate his family from the effects of fame.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
"That allowed us to isolate the effect of the warming rate alone, independent of how warm it eventually gets."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 14, 2026
The best way to contain an outbreak is to quickly diagnose cases, isolate patients and track down all their contacts to break the chain of transmission.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
It’s like trying to isolate a snowflake from a blizzard.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
While Mr. Graham-Dixon isolates the technical from the theological, Mr. Weber integrated the “optical and iconographic” aspects of Vermeer’s life and work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
By operating as a separate entity, GenCo isolates the cost of new growth to data centers, according to NiSource.
From Barron's ● Apr. 16, 2026
Both the CQC and NHS England say there is no category that isolates private GP registrations.
From BBC ● Feb. 28, 2026
In a city that frequently isolates people into their car-shaped boxes, Evans believes that spying a relatable sticker can remind people of their shared humanity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2025
This isolates the bedroom, with me in it, from the rest of the rover.
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
Unfortunately, what’s happening in Georgia isn’t an isolated case.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
This offered a glimpse of the potential for AI models to go rogue, as the models were meant to be isolated from the internet.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
“We’re really not talking about isolated communities in the woods.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
Research from Shu Cole, a professor at Indiana University’s School of Public Health, consistently shows that the farther people go, the less likely they are to report feeling depressed or isolated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Yet even if Elizebeth shied away from disclosure, she refused to become isolated.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a new campaign called “Operation Economic Outcast” aimed at isolating the Iranian regime.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
The setup made it possible to recreate extreme conditions that ordinary solid materials cannot reach while isolating the effects of particle collisions.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026
“It can be isolating if you’re the only Latino on a set,” Guido shared.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
Crump fears the ban could make young people less likely to seek support for online harms if they do encounter them, as well as isolating them from communities and information.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026
I thought and thought all afternoon, and I could see that Chester had done a good job of isolating Bunnicula from his food.
From "Bunnicula" by Deborah Howe and James Howe
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
