Main Entry: ¹sol·i·tary

Pronunciation: \ˈsä-lə-ˌter-ē\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle English, solitarie, from Anglo-French, from Latin solitarius, from solitas aloneness, from solus alone

Date: 14th century

1 a : being, living, or going alone or without companions b : saddened by isolation
2 : unfrequented, desolate <a solitary seashore>
3 a : taken, passed, or performed without companions <a solitary ramble> b : keeping a prisoner apart from others <solitary confinement>
4 : being at once single and isolated <a solitary example>
5 a : occurring singly and not as part of a group or cluster <flowers terminal and solitary> b : not gregarious, colonial, social, or compound <solitary bees>

synonyms see alone

— sol·i·tar·i·ly \ˌsä-lə-ˈter-ə-lē\ adverb

— sol·i·tar·i·ness \ˈsä-lə-ˌter-ē-nəs\ noun