Skip to main content

alienation — the state or experience of being isolated or estranged from a group or an activity to which one should belong or in which one should be involved

Part of speech: NOUN

Definition: the state or experience of being isolated or estranged from a group or an activity to which one should belong or in which one should be involved

Pronunciation (IPA): /ˌeɪliəˈneɪʃən/

Example Sentences

  • After working from home for two years, Jake felt a growing sense of alienation from his coworkers who still gathered at the office coffee machine.
  • The teenager's alienation from his family reached its peak when they discovered he had been secretly learning alien languages to join a UFO cult.
  • The new employee's alienation was so complete that even the office plant seemed to turn away from her.

alienation

NOUN

[/ˌeɪliəˈneɪʃən/]

the state or experience of being isolated or estranged from a group or an activity to which one should belong or in which one should be involved

He sits alone at the lunch table while everyone laughs across the room, feeling deep alienation.
💡 Concept

He sits alone at the lunch table while everyone laughs across the room, feeling deep alienation.

Got the picture? Now let's practice.

🎤Pronunciation

🇺🇸 US/ˌeɪliəˈneɪʃən/
🇬🇧 UK/ˌeɪliəˈneɪʃən/

🌳Etymology

Rootalien
Suffix--ation

Origin

Derived from Latin 'alienus' (belonging to another, foreign), the word originally meant 'to make another's property' or 'to transfer ownership'. Over time, it evolved to encompass psychological meanings of 'to distance' or 'to estrange', particularly in philosophical and social contexts.

Breakdown

alien- (from Latin alienus, meaning 'other, foreign, strange') + -ation (a suffix forming nouns denoting a state, process, or result of an action).

🎵Rhyme

creation
nation
station
education

🔗Collocations

social alienation
political alienation
alienation from society
sense of alienation
overcome alienation
alienation of property

📝Examples

“After working from home for two years, Jake felt a growing sense of alienation from his coworkers who still gathered at the office coffee machine.”

😄 Fun example

“The teenager's alienation from his family reached its peak when they discovered he had been secretly learning alien languages to join a UFO cult.”

😄 Fun example

“The new employee's alienation was so complete that even the office plant seemed to turn away from her.”

“Marx wrote extensively about the alienation of workers from their labor in capitalist societies.”

📚Related Words

Want to master 27,000+ words?

Sign up free for flashcards & quizzes.