as in displeasing
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in angering
to cause to change from friendly or loving to unfriendly or uncaring
her changed position on the issue surprised and alienated many of her supporters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ceding
to give over the legal possession or ownership of
landowners have a right to alienate their right of ownership—in other words, they can sell the land if they want to
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of alienating
Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 13 May 2026
Distracted balances its celeb soiree with Southern California’s sinister edge, the malaise and monotony that can make sunny days so alienating.
—Daniel Felsenthal, Pitchfork, 7 Apr. 2026
The move followed public pressure and criticism regarding Mamdani’s past rhetoric concerning Israel, which some Jewish community members find deeply offensive and alienating.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 2 Apr. 2026
Novels like Rachel Yoder’s Nightbitch depict the surreal and alienating days of early parenthood with an eye to de-glamorizing the post-partum experience.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 16 Mar. 2026
But by the summer of 2022, my toddler son and I were often the only Black folks on the playground in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a fact that felt both alienating and surreal.
—Naomi Jackson, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2026
The bit, pretentious and alienating, went viral for the wrong reasons.
—Will Tavlin, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025
This and more made growing up in Florida a strange experience both warm and alienating.
—Vogue, 18 Oct. 2025
But Beau is a very strange, alienating, ambitious, experimental film, and my hope is that people find it over the years.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2025
Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 13 June 2026
Espinoza agreed, stating that raising tuition was a hardship but preferable to alienating the neighborhood that had supported the JCC for 35 years.
—Morgan Rynor, CBS News, 12 June 2026
In this episode, Patricia finally stands up for herself, confronting not just the Boogeyman but also the women who have spent decades alienating her.
—Jen Chaney, Vulture, 3 June 2026
Five-figure seats—on top of lofty travel costs—risk alienating fans by paving the way for the wealthy to snap up tickets.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 2 June 2026
Failing to focus on issues that people can relate to — particularly young people with families — runs the risk of alienating some voters, Price said.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 June 2026
And Pritzker and fellow Democrats faced the familiar tension of trying to balance growing calls from the progressive left to generate more revenue to support state programs with a more centrist desire to avoid alienating business interests.
—Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 1 June 2026
Weiss is betting Bilton can bring new viewers to the program without alienating its current crop of die-hards.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 1 June 2026
Support for individual data centers already approved for zoning across the county has fallen along similar lines, attracting construction unions and school systems while alienating neighbors.
—Ilana Arougheti
june 1, Kansas City Star, 1 June 2026
Adjective
As the lens follows Dua, often up close and from behind, this mode of expression proves alternately absorbing and alienating.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 13 May 2026
Distracted balances its celeb soiree with Southern California’s sinister edge, the malaise and monotony that can make sunny days so alienating.
—Daniel Felsenthal, Pitchfork, 7 Apr. 2026
The move followed public pressure and criticism regarding Mamdani’s past rhetoric concerning Israel, which some Jewish community members find deeply offensive and alienating.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 2 Apr. 2026
Novels like Rachel Yoder’s Nightbitch depict the surreal and alienating days of early parenthood with an eye to de-glamorizing the post-partum experience.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 16 Mar. 2026
But by the summer of 2022, my toddler son and I were often the only Black folks on the playground in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a fact that felt both alienating and surreal.
—Naomi Jackson, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2026
The bit, pretentious and alienating, went viral for the wrong reasons.
—Will Tavlin, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025
This and more made growing up in Florida a strange experience both warm and alienating.
—Vogue, 18 Oct. 2025
But Beau is a very strange, alienating, ambitious, experimental film, and my hope is that people find it over the years.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
Diluting the MacBook Pro's Identity Apple’s push to a uniform user interface risks eroding the professional identity of the MacBook Pro, and risks alienating the creatives’ need for desktop levels of usability for mobile-first accessibility.
—Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 13 June 2026
Espinoza agreed, stating that raising tuition was a hardship but preferable to alienating the neighborhood that had supported the JCC for 35 years.
—Morgan Rynor, CBS News, 12 June 2026
In this episode, Patricia finally stands up for herself, confronting not just the Boogeyman but also the women who have spent decades alienating her.
—Jen Chaney, Vulture, 3 June 2026
Five-figure seats—on top of lofty travel costs—risk alienating fans by paving the way for the wealthy to snap up tickets.
—Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 2 June 2026
Failing to focus on issues that people can relate to — particularly young people with families — runs the risk of alienating some voters, Price said.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 June 2026
And Pritzker and fellow Democrats faced the familiar tension of trying to balance growing calls from the progressive left to generate more revenue to support state programs with a more centrist desire to avoid alienating business interests.
—Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 1 June 2026
Weiss is betting Bilton can bring new viewers to the program without alienating its current crop of die-hards.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 1 June 2026
Support for individual data centers already approved for zoning across the county has fallen along similar lines, attracting construction unions and school systems while alienating neighbors.
—Ilana Arougheti
june 1, Kansas City Star, 1 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alienating
Verb
-
In the biblical Tower of Babel story, humans are driven by hubris to try to create a tower tall enough to touch the sky, angering God in the process.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
25 May 2026
-
The retailer scaled back Pride displays and rolled back DEI programs, angering its liberal customers.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN Money,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
Even some on the council who sided with Lee have expressed wariness about ceding much of their own power to the mayor.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
11 June 2026
-
Carmine ultimately drops out of the race, ceding to Johnny Sac, but remains a key figure and even plays intermediary for New York and Jersey on multiple occasions.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
The money raised is not set to go into the state’s Medi-Cal funding but instead into the general fund, infuriating advocates who note Newsom’s budget maintains rollbacks to health insurance for undocumented immigrants, low-income elderly Californians and other vulnerable populations.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
11 June 2026
-
Union Pacific hasn’t commented publicly on the president’s remarks, but risks infuriating the president by denying them privately to investors all the same.—
Rohan Goswami,
semafor.com,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
Opposition figures, the source said, have been conveying messages to Trump’s contacts, urging him not to endorse Netanyahu or take an active part in his campaign.—
Tal Shalev,
CNN Money,
15 June 2026
-
But by the end of the 20th century, State Route 84 was running through downtown, with the sole purpose of conveying commuters back and forth between the Livermore Valley and Fremont and San Jose.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
In fact, many Democratic leaders in the center recognize that their rapprochement with the progressive wing in recent cycles has resulted in the party estranging its working-class base.—
Seth David Radwell,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Aug. 2025
-
Leaving and estranging myself from family and my Southern cultures became necessary to heal.—
Anesce Dremen,
Longreads,
3 July 2025
Verb
-
In comparison, this effect was roughly half to three quarters as large as that of assigning a student to a class with seven fewer students per teacher.—
Supreet Kaur,
Scientific American,
10 June 2026
-
The formation of this immigrant task force carries the energy of a parent assigning a child a time-consuming but ultimately meaningless task to limit distractions.—
Torrey Snow,
Baltimore Sun,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
Before the agreement was announced, Israeli forces struck in Beirut, enraging Trump, who has publicly expressed his fury with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.—
Tal Shalev,
CNN Money,
15 June 2026
-
On the other, this week brings the enraging news that U-Chicago, a school once known for its world-structuring theorists, is partnering with Anthropic to put Claude in every classroom.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
With chaos occurring in and around Ann Arbor, former LSU Tigers star defensive back Tyrann Mathieu wrote on social media that Underwood should consider transferring to his alma mater in the Bayou.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
11 Dec. 2025
-
The deal approved Thursday involves the developers buying the city out of the lease, which has the effect of transferring ownership of the site to the developer.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
11 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Alienating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alienating. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
