alienate

[eyl-yuh-neyt, ey-lee-uh-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR alienate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), al·ien·at·ed, al·ien·at·ing.

to make indifferent or hostile: By refusing to get a job, he has alienated his entire family.

to cause to be withdrawn or isolated from the objective world: Bullying alienates already shy students from their classmates.

to turn away; transfer or divert: to alienate funds from their intended purpose.

Law. to transfer or convey, as title, property, or other right, to another: to alienate lands.

Origin of alienate

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin aliēnātus (past participle of aliēnāre), equivalent to aliēn(us) alien + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsal·ien·a·tor, nounnon·al·ien·at·ing, adjectivere·al·ien·ate, verb (used with object), re·al·ien·at·ed, re·al·ien·at·ing.un·al·ien·at·ed, adjectiveun·al·ien·at·ing, adjective

Synonyms for alienate

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR alienate ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See estrange.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for alienated

disaffected, alone

Examples from the Web for alienated

Contemporary Examples of alienated

The trouble was, he alienated Pope Pius VI and Pius VII—the latter he actually arrested.
Napoleon Was a Dynamite Dictator
J.P. O’Malley
November 7, 2014
I knew that there was a God, but I was alienated by organized religion, especially the guilt part of it.
When Gary Wright Met George Harrison: Dream Weaver, John and Yoko, and More
Gary Wright
September 29, 2014
The senator has alienated many Tea Partiers and has yet to reach out to bridge the gap, Hofstra said.
Will Tea Partiers Sink Mitch McConnell’s Kentucky Senate Reelection Bid?
Ben Jacobs
August 4, 2014
Yet, 2016 may be different, as the GOP becomes ever more evangelical, Southern, blue collar, and alienated.
2016 Just May Be the GOP Base’s Year
Lloyd Green
August 4, 2014
Along the way, Munoz alienated some of her biggest allies in the reform movement.
The White House’s Woman in the Immigration Crosshairs
Eleanor Clift
July 31, 2014

Historical Examples of alienated

I know not any of the number to be alienated from the true faith.
The Rise of the Hugenots, Vol. 1 (of 2)
Henry Martyn Baird
Little by little they have been alienated from the institutions of the Republic.
The Blot on the Kaiser's 'Scutcheon
Newell Dwight Hillis
One after another he had alienated or betrayed every commander under whom he had served.
Under Fire
Charles King
She was helplessly conscious of the result: her husband was alienated from her.
Romola
George Eliot
This alienated first all competent judges, and at last the masses.
Folkways
William Graham Sumner

British Dictionary definitions for alienated

alienate

verb (tr)

to cause (a friend, sympathizer, etc) to become indifferent, unfriendly, or hostile; estrange

to turn away; divertto alienate the affections of a person

law to transfer the ownership of (property, title, etc) to another person

Derived Formsalienator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for alienated

alienate

1540s, "make estranged" (in feelings or affections), from Latin alienatus, past participle of alienare "to make another's, estrange," from alienus "of or belonging to another person or place," from alius "(an)other" (see alias (adv.)). Related: Alienated; alienating.