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
The plot centers on Nico, a 15-year-old loner bullied at school due to his parents’ funeral business.
—Jamie Lang, Variety, 17 May 2025
Louis-Dreyfus’ villainous character has positioned a number of MCU loners and rejects to kill each other for her own nefarious reasons.
—Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2025
He’s been IDed as Blake Kersten, a loner who was estranged from his family after his parents kicked him out at 17 for being gay.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
What resulted is an unlikely team-up of MCU loners and rejects — including Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Red Guardian (David Harbour), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko).
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 1 May 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.
Jamie Lang, Variety, 17 May 2025
Louis-Dreyfus’ villainous character has positioned a number of MCU loners and rejects to kill each other for her own nefarious reasons.
—Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 29 Apr. 2025
He’s been IDed as Blake Kersten, a loner who was estranged from his family after his parents kicked him out at 17 for being gay.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
What resulted is an unlikely team-up of MCU loners and rejects — including Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Red Guardian (David Harbour), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko).
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 1 May 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 24 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