Alienate Meaning
/ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjEstranged; withdrawn in affection; foreign
nounA stranger; an alien.
Sentence Examples
With that attitude, you will alienate all of your potential allies.
Yanni was attempting to alienate Skura from her friends.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The manager's constant criticism began to ____ the team members from each other.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His rude and aggressive behavior tended to ____ his coworkers.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English alienat(e) (“deranged; uncertain; sequestred, secluded”), from Latin aliēnātus, perfect passive participle of aliēnō (“to estrange, alienate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from aliēnus. By surface analysis, alien + -ate. See alien, and compare aliene.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"O alienate from God."
— 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the page number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, line 4643:
"The errors which […] alienated a loyal gentry and priesthood from the House of Stuart."
— 1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter I, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC:
"The recollection of his former life is a dream that only the more alienates him from the realities of the present."
— 1832, [Isaac Taylor], Saturday Evening. […], London: Holdsworth and Ball, →OCLC:
"The Communists had considerable influence in the Labour Party in the years 1920–26 and 1935–9. Their chief importance, and that of the whole left wing of the Labour movement, was the part they played in alienating the middle classes from Socialism."
— 1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn:
"In April and early May, the NUR and ASLEF threatened a three-day strike. Opinion on this was divided, both within the unions and among the public. Commentators saw the strike as likely to alienate the public and unlikely to win significant changes in terms of closures and job losses."
— 2023 March 22, Mike Esbester, “Staff, the public and industry will suffer”, in RAIL, number 979, page 39:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The manager's constant criticism began to ____ the team members from each other.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
His rude and aggressive behavior tended to ____ his coworkers.