Standard Lemma guide

loneliness

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ˈloʊnlinəs/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: L OW1 N L IY0 N AH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A feeling of depression resulting from being alone or from having no companions.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Examples

  • The loneliness resulting from the loss of loved ones, lack of purpose in life, and social discrimination is a real inner hell.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ellingness, lonesomeness

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The condition or state of being alone or having no companions.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Examples

  • 1657, Richard Ligon, A True & Exact History of the Island of Barbados, London: Humphrey Moseley, Dedicatory letter to the Bishop of Salisbury, [I] was designing a piece of Landscape [...] wherein I meant to expresse [...] the beauties of the Vegetables, that do adorn that place, in the highest perfection I could: But presently after, being cast into Prison, I was deprived both of light and lonelinesse, two main helpers in that Art [...]

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: aloneness, friendlessness, isolation, loneliness, loneness, onehead, oneship, onlyhood, onliness, seclusion, solitariness, solitude

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The state of being unfrequented or devoid of human activity (of a place or time).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Examples

  • 1794, Ann Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho, London: G.G. & J. Robinson, Volume 4, Chapter 3, p. 50, [...] as she sat at her bed-side, indulging melancholy reveries, which the loneliness of the hour assisted [...]

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: unfrequentedness

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A desire to be alone; disposition to solitude.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete, uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

a disposition toward being alone

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: aloneness, lonesomeness, solitariness

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: disposition, temperament

Narrower terms: friendlessness, reclusiveness

6

noun

Meaning 6

sadness resulting from being forsaken or abandoned

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: forlornness, desolation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: sadness, unhappiness

7

noun

Meaning 7

the state of being alone in solitary isolation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: solitariness

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: isolation

History

Etymology

From lonely + -ness.

Across languages

Translations

106 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: vetmi — condition of being lonely
  • Amharic: ብቸኛነት (bəčäñanät) — condition of being lonely
  • Arabic: اِنْفِرَاد (infirād) — condition of being lonely
  • Arabic: عُزْلَة (ʕuzla) — condition of being lonely
  • Arabic: وَحْدَة (waḥda) — condition of being lonely
  • Armenian: միայնություն (miaynutʻyun) — condition of being lonely
  • Azerbaijani: tənhalıq — condition of being lonely
  • Azerbaijani: yalnızlıq — condition of being lonely
  • Belarusian: само́тнасць (samótnascʹ) — condition of being lonely
  • Belarusian: адзіно́та (adzinóta) — condition of being lonely
  • Belarusian: само́та (samóta) — condition of being lonely
  • Bulgarian: самота́ (samotá) — condition of being lonely
  • Bulgarian: само́тност (samótnost) — condition of being lonely
  • Burmese: အထီးကျန်ခြင်း (a.hti:kyanhkrang:) — condition of being lonely
  • Chinese Mandarin: 寂寞 (jìmò) — condition of being lonely
  • Chinese Mandarin: 孤獨 /孤独 (gūdú) — condition of being lonely
  • Chinese Mandarin: 孤丁 (gūdīng) — condition of being lonely
  • Czech: osamělost — condition of being lonely
  • Danish: ensomhed — condition of being lonely
  • Dutch: eenzaamheid — condition of being lonely
  • Esperanto: soleco — condition of being lonely
  • Estonian: üksildus — condition of being lonely
  • Faroese: einsemi — condition of being lonely
  • Finnish: yksinäisyys — condition of being lonely
  • French: solitude — condition of being lonely
  • Galician: soidade — condition of being lonely
  • Georgian: მარტოობა (marṭooba) — condition of being lonely
  • German: Einsamkeit — condition of being lonely
  • Greek: μοναξιά (monaxiá) — condition of being lonely
  • Hebrew: בְּדִידוּת (b'didút) — condition of being lonely
  • Hindi: अकेलापन (akelāpan) — condition of being lonely
  • Hindi: तनहाई (tanhāī) — condition of being lonely
  • Hungarian: magányosság — condition of being lonely
  • Hungarian: magány — condition of being lonely
  • Hunsrik: Eensamkeet — condition of being lonely
  • Hunsrik: Eensamkeit — condition of being lonely
  • Icelandic: einmanaleiki — condition of being lonely
  • Icelandic: einsemd — condition of being lonely
  • Indonesian: kesendirian — condition of being lonely
  • Indonesian: kesepian — condition of being lonely
  • Irish: uaigneas — condition of being lonely
  • Italian: solitudine — condition of being lonely
  • Japanese: 孤独 (kodoku) — condition of being lonely
  • Japanese: 寂しさ (sabishisa) — condition of being lonely
  • Kabuverdianu: solidon — condition of being lonely
  • Kazakh: жалғыздық (jalğyzdyq) — condition of being lonely
  • Kazakh: жалқылық (jalqylyq) — condition of being lonely
  • Khmer: ឯកា (ʼaekaa) — condition of being lonely
  • Korean: 고독 (godok) — condition of being lonely
  • Korean: 외로움 (oeroum) — condition of being lonely
  • Central Kurdish: تەنھایی (tenhayî) — condition of being lonely
  • Northern Kurdish: tenêtî — condition of being lonely
  • Kyrgyz: жалгыздык (jalgızdık) — condition of being lonely
  • Latin: sōlitās — condition of being lonely
  • Latin: sōlitūdō — condition of being lonely
  • Latvian: vientulība — condition of being lonely
  • Lithuanian: vienišùmas — condition of being lonely
  • Macedonian: осаменост (osamenost) — condition of being lonely
  • Malay: kesendirian — condition of being lonely
  • Malayalam: ഏകാന്തത (ēkāntata) — condition of being lonely
  • Marathi: एकटेपणा (ekṭepṇā) — condition of being lonely
  • Mongolian: ганцаардал (gancaardal) — condition of being lonely
  • Norwegian Bokmål: ensomhet — condition of being lonely
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: einsemd — condition of being lonely
  • Persian: تنهایی (tanhâyi) — condition of being lonely
  • Polish: samotność — condition of being lonely
  • Portuguese: solidão — condition of being lonely
  • Romanian: singurătate — condition of being lonely
  • Russian: одино́чество (odinóčestvo) — condition of being lonely
  • Sanskrit: रहस् (rahas) — condition of being lonely
  • Scottish Gaelic: aonaranachd — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: самоћа — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: самoст — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: осамљеност — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: усамљеност — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: самота — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: samoća — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: samost — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: osamljenost — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: usamljenost — condition of being lonely
  • Serbo-Croatian: samota — condition of being lonely
  • Slovak: osamelosť — condition of being lonely
  • Slovene: osamljenost — condition of being lonely
  • Slovene: samóta — condition of being lonely
  • Spanish: soledad — condition of being lonely
  • Swahili: upweke — condition of being lonely
  • Swedish: ensamhet — condition of being lonely
  • Tagalog: kalaiwan — condition of being lonely
  • Tagalog: laiw — condition of being lonely
  • Tajik: танҳоӣ (tanhoyi) — condition of being lonely
  • Thai: ความเหงา (kwaam-ngǎo) — condition of being lonely
  • Turkish: yalnızlık — condition of being lonely
  • Ottoman Turkish: یالڭزلك (yalñızlık) — condition of being lonely
  • Turkmen: ýalňyzlyk — condition of being lonely
  • Ukrainian: само́тність (samótnistʹ) — condition of being lonely
  • Ukrainian: самі́тність (samítnistʹ) — condition of being lonely
  • Ukrainian: самота́ (samotá) — condition of being lonely
  • Ukrainian: самоти́на (samotýna) — condition of being lonely
  • Ukrainian: самотина́ (samotyná) — condition of being lonely
  • Urdu: اکیلاپن (akelāpan) — condition of being lonely
  • Urdu: تنہائی (tanhāī) — condition of being lonely
  • Uzbek: yolgʻizlik — condition of being lonely
  • Vietnamese: sự cô đơn — condition of being lonely
  • Yiddish: איינזאַמקייט (eynzamkeyt) — condition of being lonely
  • Finnish: hiljaisuus — state of being devoid of human activity
  • Khmer: និជ្ជជនភាព (nɨccĕəʼcŭənphiəp) — state of being devoid of human activity
Real reading context

loneliness in complete knowledge articles

Lonely runner conjecture Ideas & learning · Challenging · 4 uses Adam's Breed Literature & books · Challenging · 1 uses Is Anybody Out There? (song) Arts & music · Challenging · 1 uses Káchabuké Science & nature · Accessible · 1 uses Methodist Homes (MHA) People & society · Advanced · 1 uses