alienate
Americanverb (used with object)
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alienates,
present (3rd person singular)
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alienated,
past participle, past
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alienating
present participle
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to make indifferent or hostile.
By refusing to get a job, he has alienated his entire family.
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to cause to be withdrawn or isolated from the objective world.
Bullying alienates already shy students from their classmates.
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to turn away; transfer or divert.
to alienate funds from their intended purpose.
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Law. to transfer or convey, as title, property, or other right, to another.
to alienate lands.
verb
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to cause (a friend, sympathizer, etc) to become indifferent, unfriendly, or hostile; estrange
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to turn away; divert
to alienate the affections of a person
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law to transfer the ownership of (property, title, etc) to another person
Synonym Usage
See estrange.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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alienatesimple
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alienatessimple
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have alienatedperfect
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has alienatedperfect
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am alienatingprogressive
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are alienatingprogressive
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is alienatingprogressive
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have been alienatingperfect progressive
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has been alienatingperfect progressive
Past
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alienatedsimple
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had alienatedperfect
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was alienatingprogressive
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were alienatingprogressive
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had been alienatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of alienate
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin aliēnātus (past participle of aliēnāre “to transfer by sale, estrange”), equivalent to aliēn(us) “belonging to another, another's, foreign, alien ” + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
When you alienate people, you make them stop liking or caring about you. Show up at a conference of cat lovers with a sign around your neck that says, "I hate kittens," and you'll learn firsthand what that means. Back in the days of Latin, before the word alien came to mean little green men from outer space, it described something or someone that was foreign or different or not known: an alien custom, an alien nation. When you alienate people, you make them WISH you were an alien, or at least that they could send you to the moon.
Vocabulary lists containing alienate
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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The Devil's Arithmetic
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"Laws are not the only way to boost immunization”: an editorial from Nature
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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:
"It might alienate us initially, but eventually it inspires us," Chayka says.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
Some officials believe AI can draw humanity closer to God, while others warn it could alienate individuals or coincide with biblical end times.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026
His buffoonish bravado and frequent failures alienate everyone who is not completely in his camp.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Furthermore, the most recent joint intervention between the U.S. and Japan to support the sinking Japanese yen was carried out in a way that could further alienate the global investor community, Rosenberg said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
He had hoped, selfishly, that it might alienate her, provoke her.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The more people dislike him, the more loudly announces he’s actually a deeply moral person, which is an obnoxious and off-putting lie that alienates people more.
From Salon ● Jun. 15, 2026
He denies this assessment of his character, along with assertions that he alienates his fellow politicians.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2024
She alienates Bonnie and the whole team with bloated speeches, anti-mediocrity platitudes, bursts of temper and displays of ingratitude.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2023
His career arc is well established: Brown goes to a failing team, turns it around almost immediately, alienates people in the process and then abruptly leaves for the next challenge.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 22, 2023
“These are just rumors and gossip. The proverbs say ‘He who harps on a matter alienates his friend.’
From "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolen
From the moment she walked onto the stage at his public memorial in Arizona to fireworks more suited for a World Series championship, Erika Kirk has alienated people, even drawing accusations of faking her sorrow.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
Luxury brands have alienated some shoppers by raising prices too quickly without much innovation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
With a few posts, they alienated the very supporters who championed them as living proof of redemption.
From Slate ● Aug. 6, 2026
She went on to be the UN rights chief, a sensitive role in which she alienated some countries, especially China, which mauled her for reporting on Beijing's alleged abuses of the country's Uyghur minority group.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
It is an old rural town that has even a few bams, an alienated and microcosmic village within a large city.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Four of the party's five MPs - Ellie Chowns, Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer, Sian Berry - had publicly opposed it, with Denyer arguing it could risk "alienating a significant proportion of Jewish people".
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
Amid lagging sales, retailers marked down the figurines, alienating collectors who want to see items appreciate in value.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026
The retailer tried to appeal to a broader swath of aspirational shoppers with less expensive items and deeper discounts, further alienating its high-end clientele.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Whether you’re a young politician looking to avoid alienating your peers, or a senior representative not looking to upset the apple cart, there’s little incentive to squabble over the way things have always been done.
From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026
Copernicus’s disciple Rheticus, in the first published account of the Copernican theory, held back any reference to heliocentrism for as long as he possibly could, for fear of alienating his readers.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
