as in reserved
inclined or tending to avoid other people
The reclusive woman was more than happy to spend her day off reading and writing at home.
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Recent Examples of reclusive
Velvet Goldmine focuses on its two most dynamic characters — the Bowie-like Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) and the Iggy-esque Curt Wild (Ewan McGregor) — with Bale playing an ’80s journalist investigating whatever happened to the reclusive Slade.
—
Tim Grierson, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2026
Iran’s two major adversaries have thoroughly humiliated it; the regime was not able to hide its reclusive leader for even a few hours.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2026
Mitski is the writer of these songs, but the speaker is someone else, a reclusive woman who resides in an unkempt house.
—Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2026
As the story shifts to Birdy, a reclusive woman who inherited the same house months earlier and uncovered a clinic that predicts death dates, their lives collide in a twisting mystery where identity, secrets, and survival hang in the balance.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reclusive
Tim Grierson, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2026
Iran’s two major adversaries have thoroughly humiliated it; the regime was not able to hide its reclusive leader for even a few hours.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2026
Mitski is the writer of these songs, but the speaker is someone else, a reclusive woman who resides in an unkempt house.
—Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2026
As the story shifts to Birdy, a reclusive woman who inherited the same house months earlier and uncovered a clinic that predicts death dates, their lives collide in a twisting mystery where identity, secrets, and survival hang in the balance.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reclusive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reclusive
Adjective
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May is the most reserved of the four coaches, but lets his players get emotional on the court without trying to rein them in, trusting them to play under control.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Add American cheese, remaining 1 cup cheddar, and reserved soaking water; stir vigorously until most of the cheese is melted (some small lumps of cheese will remain and that is OK) and water is absorbed.—
Cathy Thomas,
Oc Register,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Drought conditions are spreading across the region, and much of the Philadelphia area is either abnormally dry or in a moderate drought.—
Tammie Souza,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Pat chicken dry and lightly season with salt.—
Tribune News Service,
Baltimore Sun,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The title may be clinical and detached; the image on its cover is anything but.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
-
The fire also damaged two neighboring houses and a detached garage.—
Robert A. Cronkleton
March 30,
Kansas City Star,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Tuesday’s game was moved from the evening to the afternoon in anticipation of cold temperatures.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Chu attributed the slower activity in early 2026 to high interest rates and an unusually cold winter, which kept many prospective buyers away from open houses in January and February.—
Chase Jordan
April 7,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The war is a distant drumbeat, its threat ever audible to Steele’s underemployed, eminently draftable characters from 9,000 miles away.—
Meredith Maran,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Apr. 2026
-
The 2025 rediscoveries serve as a reminder that even species unseen for decades may still persist in remote corners of the world — and that the work of birdwatchers and researchers scanning distant forests and islands continues to make a difference.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
An introverted child, Ortiz grew up enjoying painting and handcrafts, as well as having an interest in engineering and how things are built.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Apr. 2026
-
On the first day of high school, introverted Okuto Nakumara spots his classmate Aiki Hirose in the crowd of an assembly, and immediately falls head over heels for him.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Parents report that many children stop eating, lose weight and become withdrawn.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
6 Feb. 2026
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Along the way, Babilonia matured from the shy withdrawn child who refused to hold a boy’s hand into a bold, strong and confident woman.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
One of the earliest of American masculinity influencers was President Theodore Roosevelt, who touted his own transformation from a timid, effeminate man – local presses mocked him in his early career – to a rugged outdoorsman.—
Miriam Eve Mora,
The Conversation,
3 Apr. 2026
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Sergio Romano and Pierpaolo Capovilla star as two fifty-something men from Italy’s northern Veneto area who befriend a timid student from Naples, played by Filippo Scotti.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
1 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Reclusive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reclusive. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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