remote
Americanadjective
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far apart; far distant in space; situated at some distance away.
the remote jungles of Brazil.
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out-of-the-way; secluded.
a remote village;
a remote mountaintop.
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(of an electronic device or technical process) operating or controlled from a distance, as by remote control.
a remote camera.
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not direct, primary, or proximate; not directly involved or influential.
the remote causes of the war.
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slight or faint; unlikely.
The committee doesn't have the remotest idea of how to address the basic issue.
So with two games remaining, we actually have a remote chance of making the play-offs.
- Synonyms:
- doubtful
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noting or relating to work, schooling, or other activities that take place away from their usual place, site, or building: Teachers have distance learning lessons prepared in advance for weather emergencies that necessitate remote instruction.
The company allows remote work for freelancers, but full-time employees are expected to work on site.
Teachers have distance learning lessons prepared in advance for weather emergencies that necessitate remote instruction.
-
reserved and distant in manner; not warmly cordial; aloof.
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far off; abstracted; removed.
principles remote from actions.
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distant in time.
remote antiquity.
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distant in relationship or connection.
a remote ancestor.
noun
-
remotes
plural
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Radio and Television. a broadcast, usually live, from a location outside a studio.
adjective
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located far away; distant
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far from any centre of population, society, or civilization; out-of-the-way
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distant in time
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distantly related or connected
a remote cousin
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removed, as from the source or point of action
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slight or faint (esp in the phrases not the remotest idea, a remote chance )
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(of a person's manner) aloof or abstracted
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operated from a distance; remote-controlled
a remote monitor
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of remote
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin remōtus, past participle of removēre “to move back”; see remove, motion
Explanation
Remote describes something far, far away, like a campsite way out in the woods, a distant planet, or the chance you'll win the lottery. The Australian outback is remote, since it's hard to get to and there aren't many people there. It's also remote in the sense that it's far away from civilization. Someone with a faraway look in her eye, not answering your questions is also remote. Remote can describe something unlikely, like that lottery win. You might win, but your chances are so remote you shouldn't count on it.
Vocabulary lists containing remote
"Marriage is a Private Affair" by Chinua Achebe
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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100 SAT words Beginning with "R"
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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:
Click your remote control and you have an 11-foot-wide image on a white wall — a sort of private screening room.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
In October, we traveled to Southern California, the Florida coast, the Virginia countryside and a remote Canadian island.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
The radar station closed in 2006 but it was revived in 2018 for Arctic surveillance as an automated remote radar head.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
No DNA match or death certificate has been issued confirming her death, but Barrio is resigned to the worst, faced with the "extremely remote" chance of finding her alive.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
He looked down at the object, which seemed more like a remote control to him now.
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
I also had wide and mid-range angled cameras, both mounted on a tripod to be trigged by remotes.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 14, 2024
Like his night stand, which is buried under books, charging cables and remotes to TVs she is fairly certain they no longer own.
From New York Times ● Mar. 23, 2024
Much of what was retrieved from Must Farm were everyday items, the Bronze Age equivalent to the TV remotes and coffee mugs of our own lives.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 20, 2024
Then I started taking on more and more car key remotes as an essential service.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2023
Since then, however, the adaptation has been passed down: we’ve all inherited it to some degree, so that we plug right into joysticks and remotes, to repetitive motions of a hundred kinds.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
It is, rather, “a series of fan’s notes, material brought back from some of the remoter caverns of Tolkien’s imagination, into which . . . critics and biographers have rarely strayed.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
“It makes me think that it’s certainly biologically possible to have grizzly bears in those remoter corners of California,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2025
This has left digital asset companies with little choice but to seek out smaller financial institutions, some in remoter corners of global finance.
From Reuters ● Apr. 19, 2023
If the lame-duck Congress approves reforms to the laws concerning how electoral votes get validated and counted, it will become remoter still.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 16, 2022
For the moment he had shut his ears to the remoter noises and was listening to the stuff that streamed out of the telescreen.
From "1984" by George Orwell
Triflingly, a San Francisco minister took Pacheco to task because his gubernatorial declaration of the date for Thanksgiving “had not the remotest acknowledgement of Almighty God.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
Doing it safely and cost-effectively with modern infrastructure is hard but sometimes, even in remotest places, it's an option worth taking.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
A Dutch student team Tuesday unveiled what they believe to be the world's first solar-powered ambulance, which they hope can bring much-needed medical care to the remotest parts of the globe.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
She was drawn there by a desire for change and the attractive salaries Alaska offers attorneys who staff its remotest locations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
To them, that come after us, it may be as ordinary to buy a pair of wings to fly into remotest Regions; as now a pair of Boots to ride a Journey.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
