self-reliance

American  

[self-ri-lahy-uhns, self-] / ˈsɛlf rɪˈlaɪ əns, ˌsɛlf- /

noun

1. reliance on oneself or one's own powers, resources, etc.

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self-reliance British  

noun

1. reliance on one's own abilities, decisions, etc

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“Self-Reliance” Cultural  

1. (1841) An essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson that advises the reader to “Trust thyself” and argues that “whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.” It is the source of several well-known epigrams, such as “To be great is to be misunderstood” and “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”

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Other Word Forms

• self-reliant adjective
• self-reliantly adverb

Etymology

Origin of self-reliance

First recorded in 1825–35

Explanation

Self-reliance is a quality of depending on yourself for things instead of relying on others. You might decide to prove your self-reliance by hiking the Appalachian Train on your own. When people have self-reliance, they are independent and autonomous — in other words, they take care of themselves. Some of us develop self-reliance as children, when we start to prepare food for ourselves, take the bus alone, or in other ways exert our independence. The philosopher John Stuart Mill is credited with the first use of self-reliance, in an 1883 letter in which he described it as one important quality of "a free man."

Example Sentences

Watch the video above to see the broader shift taking shape in the region: stronger defenses, greater self-reliance and a world that’s becoming more fragmented.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

This increased focus on Hong Kong comes as the Chinese government in Beijing is aiming for the country to achieve more "technology self-reliance".

From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026

The Terafab is critical for Tesla’s self-reliance, addressing current chip supply bottlenecks and future demand.

From Barron's • Mar. 20, 2026

More fundamentally, the attack on Iran will only reinforce China’s bid for energy self-reliance, said Neil Beveridge, who tracks China’s energy sector at Bernstein Research.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 10, 2026

And how better than an exercise in self-reliance?

From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer

Related Words

• autonomy
• self-determination
• self-government
• self-rule
• self-sufficiency
• sovereignty