loner

noun

lon·​er ˈlō-nər 

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

Many rowers will agree that sculling is a sport for loners who relish the more quixotic elements of the sport.

—D. C. Churbuck

… she found that the image of the scientist as an antisocial loner is a myth …

—Warren E. Leary

b

: a typically solitary animal

Black bears are loners and usually wander by themselves in search of food.

—Mark Carwardine

Despite the fact they are loners, cats do have a well-organized social system based on scent marks and mutual avoidance.

—Fiona Sunquist

2

: individualist sense 1

Synonyms

• maverick
• bohemian
• individualist
• eccentric

Examples of loner in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Sketching swastikas and 'edgy' jokes: Idaho shooter not typical loner Who is Wess Roley? —Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 24 July 2025

In their latest – and their first fiction film – a Belarusian wannabe model is drawn to a mysterious loner (Marya Imbro and Mikhail Senkov) working the night shift at a morgue. —Marta Balaga, Variety, 8 July 2025

Foxes are loners, solitary creatures that get busy making families during winter breeding season and have litters at the end of March or early April. —Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 16 July 2025

The musical isn’t buying into the Elvis mythology of the brooding loner with magnetic sensuality. —Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 14 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for loner

• donor
• kroner
• kronor
• owner
• stoner
• toner
• homeowner
• landowner
• shipowner

Kids Definition

loner

noun

lon·​er ˈlō-nər 

: one that avoids others

especially : individualist sense 1