1
a
: being the only one
she was her mother's sole support
b
: having no sharer
2
: functioning independently and without assistance or interference
let conscience be the sole judge
3
: belonging exclusively or otherwise limited to one usually specified individual, unit, or group
4
: not married
—used chiefly of women
5
archaic
: having no companion : solitary
1
a
: the undersurface of a foot
b
: the part of an item of footwear on which the sole rests and upon which the wearer treads
2
: the usually flat or flattened bottom or lower part of something or the base on which something rests
soled; soling
1
: to furnish with a sole
sole a shoe
2
: to place the sole of (a golf club) on the ground
: any of various flatfishes (family Soleidae) having a small mouth, small or rudimentary fins, and small eyes placed close together and including important food fishes (such as the European Dover sole)
also
: any of various mostly market flatfishes (such as lemon sole) of other families (such as Pleuronectidae)
Synonyms
Examples of sole in a Sentence
Adjective
He became the sole heir to the property.
The sole aim of the program is to help the poor.
She was the sole survivor of the tragedy.
Icy roads were the sole cause of the accident.
He has sole jurisdiction of the area.
Verb
My shoes need to be soled.
Recent Examples on the Web
Marcus D. Smith, Sacramento Bee, 14 May 2024
Bill Gates will become its sole chair, the organization said.
—Sophie Alexander / Bloomberg, TIME, 13 May 2024
Cohen testified that the sole purpose of the scheme was to protect Trump's political fortunes and obscure his role in orchestrating the arrangements.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 13 May 2024
Krekorian, who has the sole power to hand out committee assignments, gave no explanation, and his office did not immediately provide comment.
—David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2024
The eldest in her family, Goldberg is the sole survivor of a certain era.
—Andrew Sciallo, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
In the filing, the Stori Telling author asked for sole physical custody of their kids and joint legal custody, with McDermott’s visitation rights to be determined.
—Brendan Le, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024
The deal also comes after a complex legal battle — surrounding contracts and music tied to Flow La Movie — ended in 2022 when a global settlement agreement legally named Hernández as the sole representative of her father’s estate.
—Griselda Flores, Billboard, 7 May 2024
Currently, the experiment only works with these laboratory fruit flies, which are the sole species that can be genetically modified to image muscles simultaneously.
—IEEE Spectrum, 6 May 2024
Jessica Booth, Parents, 3 May 2024
And their anti-skid sole offers more grip and traction than other shoes in my closet.
—Emily Weaver, Peoplemag, 5 May 2024
Her choice of footwear only upped the ante through a prominent sole that reimagines a classic from the Italian fashion house.
—Selene Oliva, Glamour, 5 May 2024
Pay attention to the traction of the sole to minimize the risk of your child slipping and falling.
—Jessica Booth, Parents, 3 May 2024
Brian Robbins will remain the sole had a Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 2 May 2024
The Dew Drop Mule, for example, features gradient fabric at the sole, and the nature of the fabric ensures that no two pairs will ever be alike.
—Irene Kim, Vogue, 16 Apr. 2024
Stiff Soles and Toe Springs Another way traditional shoes can also inhibit toe flexibility is through the design of the sole.
—Laura Lancaster, Outdoor Life, 11 Apr. 2024
But there are more details, too, like a platform sole and antiqued brass tunnel eyelets for the laces — adding a subtle steampunk flair.
—Olivia Muenter, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024
Nneya Richards, Travel + Leisure, 15 July 2023
Adjective
Tribal officials signed a land grant documentation effectively placing 77 acres of land back in sole ownership of its original owners.
—Marcus D. Smith, Sacramento Bee, 14 May 2024
Bill Gates will become its sole chair, the organization said.
—Sophie Alexander / Bloomberg, TIME, 13 May 2024
Cohen testified that the sole purpose of the scheme was to protect Trump's political fortunes and obscure his role in orchestrating the arrangements.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 13 May 2024
Krekorian, who has the sole power to hand out committee assignments, gave no explanation, and his office did not immediately provide comment.
—David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2024
The eldest in her family, Goldberg is the sole survivor of a certain era.
—Andrew Sciallo, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
In the filing, the Stori Telling author asked for sole physical custody of their kids and joint legal custody, with McDermott’s visitation rights to be determined.
—Brendan Le, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024
The deal also comes after a complex legal battle — surrounding contracts and music tied to Flow La Movie — ended in 2022 when a global settlement agreement legally named Hernández as the sole representative of her father’s estate.
—Griselda Flores, Billboard, 7 May 2024
Currently, the experiment only works with these laboratory fruit flies, which are the sole species that can be genetically modified to image muscles simultaneously.
—IEEE Spectrum, 6 May 2024
Noun
They are made of stretchy neoprene material that looks and goes on like a sock and has a nonslip sole.
—Jessica Booth, Parents, 3 May 2024
And their anti-skid sole offers more grip and traction than other shoes in my closet.
—Emily Weaver, Peoplemag, 5 May 2024
Her choice of footwear only upped the ante through a prominent sole that reimagines a classic from the Italian fashion house.
—Selene Oliva, Glamour, 5 May 2024
Pay attention to the traction of the sole to minimize the risk of your child slipping and falling.
—Jessica Booth, Parents, 3 May 2024
Brian Robbins will remain the sole had a Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 2 May 2024
The Dew Drop Mule, for example, features gradient fabric at the sole, and the nature of the fabric ensures that no two pairs will ever be alike.
—Irene Kim, Vogue, 16 Apr. 2024
Stiff Soles and Toe Springs Another way traditional shoes can also inhibit toe flexibility is through the design of the sole.
—Laura Lancaster, Outdoor Life, 11 Apr. 2024
But there are more details, too, like a platform sole and antiqued brass tunnel eyelets for the laces — adding a subtle steampunk flair.
—Olivia Muenter, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024
Verb
Rubber soled and perfect for a boat my favorite espadrille maker is famed Spanish house, Castañer.
—Nneya Richards, Travel + Leisure, 15 July 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sole.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near sole
Cite this Entry
“Sole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sole. Accessed 22 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sole
1 of 4 noun1
: the underside of a foot
2
: the part of footwear on which the sole of the foot rests
soled
adjective
ˈsōld
sole
2 of 4 verb
soled; soling
: to furnish with a sole
sole shoes
sole
3 of 4 noun
: any of various flatfishes that have a small mouth, small fins, and small closely set eyes and that include some fishes used for food
sole
4 of 4 adjective1
archaic
: having no companion : alone
2
a
: having no sharer
sole owner
b
: being the only one
3
: acting independently and without assistance or interference
the sole judge
4
: belonging only to the one person, unit, or group named
given sole authority
soleness
noun
Etymology
Noun
Middle English sole "the underside of the foot or shoe," from early French sole (same meaning), from Latin solea "sandal"
Noun
Middle English sole "a type of flatfish," from early French sole (same meaning), from Latin solea "sandal, a flatfish"
Adjective
Middle English sole "alone," from early French seul (same meaning), from Latin solus "alone" — related to desolate, solitude, solo
Medical Definition
sole
noun1
: the undersurface of a foot
2
: the somewhat concave plate of moderately dense horn that covers the lower surface of the coffin bone of the horse, partly surrounds the frog, and is bounded externally by the wall
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