alienated

[ey-lee-uh-ney-tid, eyl-yuh-]

adjective

1. indifferent or hostile.

   A year after the floods, the failure of the promised rehabilitation package has fed an already alienated populace's sense of hurt and anger towards the government.

2. withdrawn or isolated from the objective world.

   Albert Camus's novel The Stranger is the story of an alienated, unfeeling man who kills someone for no reason and dies without remorse.

3. turned away from its original purpose or course; transferred or diverted.

   The investment firm, which misappropriated millions of dollars committed to it, was required to restore the alienated funds to the plaintiff.

4. Law.,  (of property, title, rights, etc.) transferred or conveyed to another.

   Much reservation territory is now owned and controlled by non-Indigenous people, depriving Indigenous nations of billions of dollars in potential income from these alienated lands.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of alienate.

Other Word Forms

• unalienated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of alienated¹

alienate ( def. ) + -ed ²

Example Sentences

That builds camaraderie among team members but leaves these traders alienated and in vicious competition with others, even those at their own firms.

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Ms. Ono sings, at MSG, “Don’t Worry Kyoko,” which was one of those numbers that alienated Beatles fans, who thought it noisy.

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His extraordinary demand to unseat an allied government in wartime alienated pro-Israel voters while buying him no credibility with the left.

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But broadening the statement last month to reflect hawks’ concerns would have alienated doves, leaving Powell to deliver the message.

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Mr. Carlson’s willingness to challenge GOP talking points made him appealing to economically anxious and culturally alienated young men.

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Related Words

• disaffected