as in distant
having or showing a lack of friendliness or interest in others
she proved to be simply shy, not standoffish
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Recent Examples of standoffish
Her brood includes peacocks, chickens, goats, horses, donkeys, and a new rescue rabbit named Bugsy who’s a bit standoffish.
—
Emily Elias, Vogue, 15 Jan. 2026
Moscow’s standoffish stance last year was a wake-up call to Tehran’s leadership about the limits of its alliance with Putin — limits that were being seen today too, analysts said.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 14 Jan. 2026
Created by Liz Tuccillo (Alaska Daily), Best Medicine centers on Martin Best, a standoffish but talented Boston surgeon who’s abruptly taken a post as Port Wenn’s new general practitioner.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 2 Jan. 2026
Toby-Chien is loyal, rambunctious and devoted, while Kiki is standoffish and narcissistic, and the conversations between them are cleverly comic.
—Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for standoffish
Emily Elias, Vogue, 15 Jan. 2026
Moscow’s standoffish stance last year was a wake-up call to Tehran’s leadership about the limits of its alliance with Putin — limits that were being seen today too, analysts said.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 14 Jan. 2026
Created by Liz Tuccillo (Alaska Daily), Best Medicine centers on Martin Best, a standoffish but talented Boston surgeon who’s abruptly taken a post as Port Wenn’s new general practitioner.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 2 Jan. 2026
Toby-Chien is loyal, rambunctious and devoted, while Kiki is standoffish and narcissistic, and the conversations between them are cleverly comic.
—Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for standoffish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for standoffish
Adjective
-
As part of the regional consolidation, offices in distant counties could now answer calls and schedule appointments for Jean’s office, and vice versa.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
-
The production is cold, distant, and uncertain, like the world lately, but within the song the lyrics feel warm and comforting.—
Time,
Time,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
The treatments were carried out at Ali’s semi-detached home in Leicester, which was described by investigators and witnesses as unsanitary and unsuitable for clinical care, the news outlet reported.—
Angelique Brenes,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
-
The property also features a detached, two-story guest house with two independent living spaces.—
Rodney Ho,
AJC.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Amanda Lee Myers is a senior crime reporter who covers the death penalty, cold case investigations and breaking news for USA TODAY.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
-
In Milan, Pietrantoni had just worked with a design studio on an installation with cold lighting, which was drawing interested crowds.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
For the priests, this was a case of demonic possession due to witch-craft, and Mary’s crabby, aloof neighbor Elizabeth Jackson was the prime witch suspect.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The pop star needs a dress for a comeback show the following weekend, just days away, which Sam and her aloof assistant Hilda (Hunter Schafer, wasted) say can’t be done.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
While Jaquez did not provide the eye-popping scoring of some of her teammates, the wing brought a cool effectiveness to the defensive side of the ball while tallying a pair of assists and a handful of deflections.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
10 May 2026
-
Pair white jeans with a black tee for timeless contrast, layer a white denim jacket with a flowy dress on spring days, or style white shorts and skirts with lightweight tops to stay cool all summer.—
Published,
Southern Living,
9 May 2026
Adjective
-
Blue Origin, on the other hand, is taking its usual reserved approach compared to SpaceX's iterative design implementations.—
Chelsea Gohd,
Space.com,
8 May 2026
-
Redford sought to play the Bob Woodward character as reserved and calculating, while Hoffman, as Carl Bernstein, was manic and chain-smoking.—
Peter Bart,
Deadline,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
Parents report that many children stop eating, lose weight and become withdrawn.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
6 Feb. 2026
-
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
Cite this Entry
“Standoffish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/standoffish. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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