1
: one that avoids others: such as
a
: a person who is often alone or likes to be alone : someone who usually avoids the company of others
He is a moody loner who doesn't become chummy with anyone.—
Sam Moses
Sam MosesMany rowers will agree that sculling is a sport for loners who relish the more quixotic elements of the sport.—D. C. Churbuck
D. C. Churbuck… she found that the image of the scientist as an antisocial loner is a myth …—Warren E. Leary
Warren E. Leary
b
: a typically solitary animal
Black bears are loners and usually wander by themselves in search of food.—Mark Carwardine
Mark CarwardineDespite the fact they are loners, cats do have a well-organized social system based on scent marks and mutual avoidance.—Fiona Sunquist
Fiona SunquistExamples of loner in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Yes, Joel — the beloved hunky loner, who drove much of Season 1, and became a father-figure to Ellie (Bella Ramsey), who must now lead Season 2 — is gone.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 21 Apr. 2025
Nova is a very smart girl and, like Buffy, a loner.
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
Actually, everyone in the movie talks that way, but Brendan is still an outsider, a moody loner who cares more about cracking the case of his missing ex-girlfriend than fitting in at school.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Director David Ayer teams again with Statham after last year’s successful violent actioner, The Beekeeper, and the screenplay comes from him and none other than Sylvester Stallone, who no doubt likes the Rambo-ish loner-style resemblance to Cade.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for loner
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 21 Apr. 2025
Nova is a very smart girl and, like Buffy, a loner.
—Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
Actually, everyone in the movie talks that way, but Brendan is still an outsider, a moody loner who cares more about cracking the case of his missing ex-girlfriend than fitting in at school.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Director David Ayer teams again with Statham after last year’s successful violent actioner, The Beekeeper, and the screenplay comes from him and none other than Sylvester Stallone, who no doubt likes the Rambo-ish loner-style resemblance to Cade.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for loner
Cite this Entry
“Loner.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/loner. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
loner
noun
lon·er
ˈlō-nər 
: one that avoids others
especially
: individualist sense 1
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share