CASTAWAY Synonyms: 30 Similar and Opposite Words

castaway 1 of 2

noun

Definition of castaway

as in reject

one who is cast out or rejected by society one theory is that Easter Island was first settled by castaways from Polynesia

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

insider

castaway

2 of 2

adjective

as in lost

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 castaway

Noun

Gilligan’s Island, American television sitcom about a group of castaways on a desert island and the chaos that ensues as their attempts at rescue are constantly thwarted. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Aug. 2026 Supporters of the theory believe that Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan became stranded on the remote island after failing to reach Howland Island — possibly dying as castaways. — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2026

Adjective

Chartering a speedboat, we were whisked into the bay, a spellbinding expanse of calm, amniotic water dotted with more than 50 tiny islands and pristine beaches that called to mind castaway fantasies. — David Amsden, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025 Colts head coach Shane Steichen has found something in castaway quarterback Daniel Jones. — Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for castaway

Recent Examples of Synonyms for castaway

Noun

All three are crime drama-thrillers, the most exportable and ordered of program types, but all three reject tropes of the genre.

— John Hopewell, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
Pollock's rejects were the source material for Bald Eagle, according to Kumar.

— Anastasia Tsioulcas, NPR, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of reject

Adjective

The steady trickle of those recordings into the groundwater of influence has guaranteed the album its afterlife, both as a great lost future of American music and as a central pillar in the group’s legacy.

— Ryan Meehan, Pitchfork, 26 Oct. 2026
Walczak’s estimates assume local governments raise tax rates enough to fully replace the lost revenue, based on state property records for every parcel in Florida.

— Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of lost

Adjective

The program has been under consideration for some time, Fujitsu says, and its aim is not to pin down what women bring to animation that was previously absent.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 26 Oct. 2026
Most notably, Gershman has been absent, having fought to be able to hold an instrument or pick up his son again after a debilitating battle with long COVID and resulting autoimmune disease.

— Leena Tailor, SPIN, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of absent

Noun

Their limited budgets also have required both to identify which castoffs elsewhere could become valuable contributors.

— Andrew Greif, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
Filled with castoffs from other teams and cheap internal options having the best few weeks of their careers at the perfect time.

— Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of castoff

Noun

The best part of the movie is Murray Bartlett’s wise leper, a man who for the vast majority of his screen time is covered head to toe.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Robin also strikes up a friendship with a soulful, philosophical leper (Murray Bartlett, covered in wrappings from head to toe), who somehow recognizes his good qualities.

— Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 11 June 2026

Definition of leper

Adjective

Mubarak Bekheit, an aid worker in Darfur, told the AP by phone on Wednesday that many people remained missing and some bodies had yet to be recovered from homes in the area after the strike hit a civilian neighborhood.

— YASSIR ABDALLA, Arkansas Online, 29 Oct. 2026
The Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office is looking for an 80-year-old missing woman.

— Maven Navarro, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Oct. 2026