estrange
Americanverb (used with object)
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to turn away in feeling or affection; make unfriendly or hostile; alienate the affections of.
Their quarrel estranged the two friends.
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to remove to or keep at a distance.
The necessity for traveling on business has estranged him from his family.
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to divert from the original use or possessor.
verb
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to separate and live apart from (one's spouse)
he is estranged from his wife
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to antagonize or lose the affection of (someone previously friendly); alienate
Related Words
Estrange, alienate, disaffect share the sense of causing (someone) to turn away from a previously held state of affection, comradeship, or allegiance. Estrange often implies replacement of love or belonging by apathy or hostility: erstwhile lovers estranged by a misunderstanding. Alienate often calls attention to the cause of antagonism or separation: His inconsiderate behavior alienated both friends and family. Disaffect usually refers to relationships involving allegiance or loyalty rather than love or affection: disaffected workers, demoralized by ill-considered management policies.
Other Word Forms
- estrangement noun
- estranger noun
Etymology
Origin of estrange
First recorded in 1475–85; from Middle French, Old French estranger; cognate with Portuguese estranhar, Spanish estrañar, Italian straniare, from Medieval Latin extrāneāre “to treat as a stranger,” derivative of Latin extrāneus “external, foreign, strange”; extraneous
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.
"Children who choose to estrange themselves aren't making a little decision on a whim," explained Joshua Stein, a researcher who tracks online trends, especially those that intersect with psychology and bioethics.
From Salon • Dec. 18, 2024
Another reason I spend more time advising those who estrange vs. those who have been estranged?
From Washington Post • Jun. 8, 2022
I would be extremely surprised if your weird in-laws decide to permanently estrange themselves from your granddaughter over this, but odder things have happened.
From Slate • Nov. 1, 2019
And now the cat is out of the bag, and the new electronic devices, which estrange people from their morals, also make it easier to steal music than to pay for it.”
From New York Times • Oct. 14, 2014
It was such a cruel thing to do; to estrange two friends of such long standing.
From Marjorie Dean College Junior by Lester, Pauline
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
