as in independent
able to take care of oneself or itself without outside help
a surprisingly calm and self-reliant child
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Recent Examples of self-reliant
Instead, Battilana emphasizes that learning your way around the kitchen from a young age can help a person feel more self-reliant.
—
Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 30 Sep. 2025
And yet Birkin was far from the self-reliant gamine embodied by Clara Bow.
—Anahid Nersessian, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
America gave me the confidence of being self-reliant, to care for oneself.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Anyone who visits should be prepared to be fully self-reliant, with extra food, water, and any necessary medications.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-reliant
Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 30 Sep. 2025
And yet Birkin was far from the self-reliant gamine embodied by Clara Bow.
—Anahid Nersessian, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
America gave me the confidence of being self-reliant, to care for oneself.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Anyone who visits should be prepared to be fully self-reliant, with extra food, water, and any necessary medications.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-reliant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-reliant
independent
Adjective
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Compute, sensors, steering, braking, and charging systems are all integrated into a unified autonomy stack rather than operating as independent subsystems.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
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Camera Cinemas — the independent outfit led by Jack NyBlom, Jim Zuur and Dennis Skaggs — came in, renovated and added four auditoriums and reopened in July 2002 with a combo of first-run blockbusters and independent movies.—
Sal Pizarro,
Mercury News,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-reliant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-reliant. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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