isolate

[ verb ahy-suh-leyt; noun, adjective ahy-suh-lit, -leyt ]

/ verb ˈaɪ səˌleɪt; noun, adjective ˈaɪ sə lɪt, -ˌleɪt /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: isolate / isolated / isolating on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), i·so·lat·ed, i·so·lat·ing.

to set or place apart; detach or separate so as to be alone.

Medicine/Medical. to keep (an infected person) from contact with noninfected persons; quarantine.

Chemistry, Bacteriology. to obtain (a substance or microorganism) in an uncombined or pure state.

Electricity. to insulate.

Television. to single out (a person, action, etc.) for a camera closeup.

noun

a person, thing, or group that is set apart or isolated, as for purposes of study.

Psychology. a person, often shy or lacking in social skills, who avoids the company of others and has no friends within a group.

Biology. an inbreeding population that is isolated from similar populations by physiological, behavioral, or geographic barriers.

Also called language isolate. Linguistics. a language with no demonstrable genetic relationship, as Basque.

something that has been isolated, as a by-product in a manufacturing process: an isolate of soy flour.

adjective

isolated; alone.

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is commonly used with other verbs to express intention?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of isolate

First recorded in 1800–10; back formation from isolated

OTHER WORDS FROM isolate

i·so·la·tor, nounre·i·so·late, verb (used with object), re·i·so·lat·ed, re·i·so·lat·ing.un·i·so·late, verb (used with object), un·i·so·lat·ed, un·i·so·lat·ing.

Words nearby isolate

isoionic point, isokeraunic, isokinetic exercise, isolable, isolatable, isolate, isolated, isolated camera, isolated explosive disorder, isolated pawn, isolated point

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use isolate in a sentence

Existing abusive relationships have worsened, and digital abuse has seen an uptick as people have grown increasingly isolated and spent more time online.
Deepfake porn is ruining women’s lives. Now the law may finally ban it|Karen Hao|February 12, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Meunier is typically considered the junior partner in the Champagne triumvirate alongside chardonnay and pinot noir, and when you isolate it as Prévost does, the results are totally distinct.
You Should Be Drinking Grower Champagne|Jordan Michelman|February 11, 2021|Eater
If players contract the virus the week before the NCAA tournament, there presumably wouldn’t be enough time for them to isolate, recover and return to play.
Big Ten moves men’s basketball tournament to Indianapolis|Emily Giambalvo|February 9, 2021|Washington Post
As to what the study could lead to in terms of actual interventions, the study’s authors note that it can help anticipate outcomes and isolate individuals from others who are at risk.
Mount Sinai study finds Apple Watch can predict COVID-19 diagnosis up to a week before testing|Darrell Etherington|February 9, 2021|TechCrunch

We’re being told that it’s safe for people to go to their jobs but we need to isolate at home as much as possible.
Marketing Briefing: How the Super Bowl represents a return to normalcy that’s yet to become reality|Kristina Monllos|February 9, 2021|Digiday
JUDNICK: My reaction is so visceral that I immediately, like you, isolate myself so I can breathe.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting|Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are, after all, carefully selected “types,” and to isolate them runs the risk of seeing the book as an allegory.
Albert Camus, Our Existential Epidemiologist|Malcolm Jones|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We can do that because of two things: strong health care…and strong public health that can track contacts and isolate them.
CDC Director: First U.S. Ebola Patient ‘Critically Ill’|Abby Haglage|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Backed by NATO solidarity and economic sanctions with teeth, it just might isolate Putin enough that he backs off.
This Really Is Obama's Moment of Truth|Jonathan Alter|September 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He made a decision to isolate himself, so I would ask did he think he was going to die when he realized he was exposed?
Sanjay Gupta, on the Ebola Front Lines|Tim Teeman|August 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If now we wish to study one given form, it becomes necessary to isolate them from the others.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
It is quite impossible to isolate children from every intimation of the erotic or the sexual.
The Sexual Life of the Child|Albert Moll
It will be one of the future problems of plant and animal breeders to isolate and breed "mutants," as such organisms are called.
A Civic Biology|George William Hunter
Do not allow two young children habitually to isolate themselves in their play.
The Mother and Her Child|William S. Sadler
Unfortunately I have yet been unable to isolate what causes the female principle here; so this is not a possibility yet.
The Double Spy|Dan T. Moore

British Dictionary definitions for isolate

isolate

verb (ˈaɪsəˌleɪt) (tr)

to place apart; cause to be alone

med to quarantine (a person or animal) having or suspected of having a contagious disease

to obtain (a compound) in an uncombined form

to obtain pure cultures of (bacteria, esp those causing a particular disease)

electronics to prevent interaction between (circuits, components, etc); insulate

noun (ˈaɪsəlɪt)

an isolated person or group

Derived forms of isolate

isolable, adjectiveisolability, nounisolator, noun

Word Origin for isolate

C19: back formation from isolated, via Italian from Latin insulātus, literally: made into an island; see insulate

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

Medical definitions for isolate

isolate

[ ī′sə-lāt′ ]

To set apart or cut off from others.

To place in quarantine.

To separate a pure strain from a mixed bacterial or fungal culture.

To separate or remove a chemical substance out of a combined mixture.

To separate experiences or memories from the emotions relating to them.

A bacterial or fungal strain that has been isolated.

Other words from isolate

i′so•la′tor n.

isolate

Origin of isolate

OTHER WORDS FROM isolate

Words nearby isolate

Words related to isolate

How to use isolate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for isolate

Derived forms of isolate

Word Origin for isolate

Medical definitions for isolate

Other words from isolate