as in alienation
the loss of friendship or affection
a silly quarrel that eventually resulted in a complete and lasting estrangement between the onetime friends
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Recent Examples of estrangement
After a period of estrangement preceded by a legal spat, Salt-N-Pepa have made peace with Spinderella, who will be part of the tour.
—
Andy Greene, VIBE.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Through no fault of Newton’s, Faith functions less as a second protagonist than a prop to give Grace more emotional investment in the proceedings by saddling her with guilt over their estrangement or opportunities to nobly sacrifice herself.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Mar. 2026
Waking up in the hospital, Grace is reunited with her younger sister Faith (Kathryn Newton), who is still her emergency contact despite years of estrangement.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 13 Mar. 2026
The day after announcing her new song, Brooke opened up about her estrangement from her father in the years leading up to his death in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Mar. 2026
Stellan Skarsgård plays an aging filmmaker whose selfish past led to an estrangement from his daughters and who wants to make a movie inspired by their mom.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Your children's grandparents could be out of the picture due to estrangement, distance, or death.
—wendy Wisner, Parents, 7 Mar. 2026
In 2016, Purdue welcomed Mount back to be honored after a decades-long estrangement during a game against Iowa.
—Scott Dochterman, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
But during the couple’s bitter and years-long divorce battle, the domestic violence allegations resurfaced and reportedly contributed to the actor’s estrangement from most, if not all, of his six children.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
Andy Greene, VIBE.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Through no fault of Newton’s, Faith functions less as a second protagonist than a prop to give Grace more emotional investment in the proceedings by saddling her with guilt over their estrangement or opportunities to nobly sacrifice herself.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Mar. 2026
Waking up in the hospital, Grace is reunited with her younger sister Faith (Kathryn Newton), who is still her emergency contact despite years of estrangement.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 13 Mar. 2026
The day after announcing her new song, Brooke opened up about her estrangement from her father in the years leading up to his death in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Mar. 2026
Stellan Skarsgård plays an aging filmmaker whose selfish past led to an estrangement from his daughters and who wants to make a movie inspired by their mom.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 8 Mar. 2026
Your children's grandparents could be out of the picture due to estrangement, distance, or death.
—wendy Wisner, Parents, 7 Mar. 2026
In 2016, Purdue welcomed Mount back to be honored after a decades-long estrangement during a game against Iowa.
—Scott Dochterman, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
But during the couple’s bitter and years-long divorce battle, the domestic violence allegations resurfaced and reportedly contributed to the actor’s estrangement from most, if not all, of his six children.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for estrangement
Noun
-
The result thus far has been the intensification of American military pressure and the permanent alienation of Iran’s neighbors, some of whom will support or even join the war against it.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
23 Mar. 2026
-
An illegible city produces anxiety, alienation and disorientation.—
Yunus Emre Tozal,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But even though right when the divorce was announced, there were reports that Urban had already moved on, there hasn’t really been much chatter about Kidman possibly doing the same.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
23 Mar. 2026
-
Ngatikaura, who also appears on the Hulu reality show, filed for divorce earlier this month.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
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But the Nexstar-Tegna deal has also created a schism in conservative media, with Newsmax and One America News Network lobbying hard against the deal.—
Brian Stelter,
CNN Money,
19 Mar. 2026
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The schism surfaced in interviews the Union-Tribune did with nearly 30 veterans representing the Navy, Marines, Army and Air Force, men and women whose ages ranged from the early 30s to early 80s.—
Gary Robbins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
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On her new single—a piano ballad of dubious sincerity—Canadian DJ and songwriter Brat Star invokes Paltrow’s greatest role as one-third of a holy trinity of disaffection.—
Walden Green,
Pitchfork,
2 Mar. 2026
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Ultimately, many of these books’ characters are portrayed as avatars of resentment and disaffection, men who seem to fall prey to the rigid vision of masculinity dispensed by real-life adherents to the manosphere.—
Eric Magnuson,
The Atlantic,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Dixon produced 20 tackles and six pass breakups in his lone campaign with the Tar Heels.—
Mike Kaye
March 24,
Charlotte Observer,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The result would be the cataclysmic breakup of a country of 240 million people.—
Obi Anyadike,
semafor.com,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The membrane could also enable selective separation of ions with the same electric charge by exploiting subtle differences in how ions behave under an electric field.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Mar. 2026
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Emmanuel, who served for two years in the Obama administration and was a policy advisor to President Bill Clinton, told the outlet that government employees must have clear lines of separation between government and betting.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The rift is compounded by a difference in strategy on the midterm elections that came to a head earlier this year.—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
23 Mar. 2026
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John said the rift between father and son stems from Tyson’s decision to fight Oleksandr Usyk twice.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
21 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Estrangement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/estrangement. Accessed 26 Mar. 2026.
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