alienation

noun

alien·​ation ˌā-lē-ə-ˈnā-shən 

ˌāl-yə-

1

: a withdrawing or separation of a person or a person's affections from an object or position of former attachment : estrangement

Alienation … from the values of one's society and family.

—S. L. Halleck

2

: a conveyance of property to another

Synonyms of alienation

• estrangement

Examples of alienation in a Sentence

after years of alienation from her family, she became reconciled with them when her father fell ill

Recent Examples on the Web

That classic capitalist disconnect — the alienation of the worker from their labor — fascinated him, and gave him the confidence that his premise would have universal resonance. —Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026

Her daughter Auri has been denied from courses based on her diagnosis alone and has faced alienation at the park, her favorite place to be. —Gillian Stawiszynski, Cincinnati Enquirer, 14 Feb. 2026

The alienation that message creates—particularly in combination with extreme partisanship—has the potential to reshape the way Americans interact with their neighbors, schools, employers, churches, and democratic institutions. —Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2026

While his early films were about becoming human again, about using the fiction of cinema to make someone more real, his recent work has tacked in the opposite direction—intensifying alienation to such an extent that the human disappears. —Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English alienacioun "transference of property rights, derangement, estrangement," borrowed from Anglo-French alienaciun, alienation, borrowed from Latin aliēnātiōn-, aliēnātiō "transference of ownership, estrangement, hostility" (mentis aliēnātiō "mental disorder, insanity"), from aliēnāre "to transfer (goods, property) to another, render hostile, estrange" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at alienate

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing alienation

• self-alienation

Rhymes for alienation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Kids Definition

alienation

noun

alien·​ation ˌā-lē-ə-ˈnā-shən 

ˌāl-yə-ˈnā-

1

: a withdrawing or separation of a person or a person's affection from an object of past attachment

2

: a transfer of property to another

Medical Definition

alienation

noun

alien·​ation ˌā-lē-ə-ˈnā-shən, ˌāl-yə- 

: a withdrawing or separation of a person or a person's affections from an object or position of former attachment

alienation … from the values of one's society and family

—S. L. Halleck