lonely

[lohn-lee]

adjective

lonelier, loneliest 

1. affected with, characterized by, or causing a depressing feeling of being alone; lonesome.

2. destitute of sympathetic or friendly companionship, intercourse, support, etc..

   a lonely exile.

3. lone; solitary; without company; companionless.

4. remote from places of human habitation; desolate; unfrequented; bleak.

   a lonely road.

   Synonyms: unpopulated, uninhabited

5. standing apart; isolated.

   a lonely tower.

   Synonyms: secluded

lonely

/ ˈləʊnlɪ /

adjective

1. unhappy as a result of being without the companionship of others

   a lonely man

2. causing or resulting from the state of being alone

   a lonely existence

3. isolated, unfrequented, or desolate

4. without companions; solitary

Other Word Forms

• loneliness noun
• lonelily adverb
• lonelihood noun
• unlonely adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of lonely¹

First recorded in 1600–10; lone + -ly

Synonym Study

See alone.

Example Sentences

With limited use of first-team facilities, it is a lonely existence.

From BBC

With her brothers sent away to boarding school, Katharine's childhood was a lonely one.

From BBC

They described feeling lonely and even suicidal, and said they realised what they had done was wrong.

From BBC

Then when I hit Utah, I got incredibly lonely.

From Los Angeles Times

Then it grows small again, a lonely keyboard wandering a broken chord as Bryant’s voiceover admits that his body can only play for so long.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• deserted 
• desolate 
• destitute 
• empty 
• homeless 
• isolated 
• lonesome 
• reclusive www.thesaurus.com
• solitary