solitary

• WordNet 3.6
  • adj solitary devoid of creatures "a lonely crossroads","a solitary retreat","a trail leading to an unfrequented lake"
  • adj solitary being the only one; single and isolated from others "the lone doctor in the entire county","a lonesome pine","an only child","the sole heir","the sole example","a solitary instance of cowardice","a solitary speck in the sky"
  • adj solitary characterized by or preferring solitude "a lone wolf","a lonely existence","a man of a solitary disposition","a solitary walk"
  • adj solitary lacking companions or companionship "he was alone when we met him","she is alone much of the time","the lone skier on the mountain","a lonely fisherman stood on a tuft of gravel","a lonely soul","a solitary traveler"
  • adj solitary of plants and animals; not growing or living in groups or colonies "solitary bees"
  • n solitary one who lives in solitude
  • n solitary confinement of a prisoner in isolation from other prisoners "he was held in solitary"
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• • Solitary Living or being by one's self; having no companion present; being without associates; single; alone; lonely. "Those rare and solitary , these in flocks.""Hie home unto my chamber,
    Where thou shalt find me, sad and solitary ."
  • Solitary (Bot) Not associated with others of the same kind.
  • Solitary Not inhabited or occupied; without signs of inhabitants or occupation; desolate; deserted; silent; still; hence, gloomy; dismal; as, the solitary desert. "How doth the city sit solitary , that was full of people.""Let that night be solitary ; let no joyful voice come therein."
  • Solitary Not much visited or frequented; remote from society; retired; lonely; as, a solitary residence or place.
  • n Solitary One who lives alone, or in solitude; an anchoret; a hermit; a recluse.
  • Solitary Performed, passed, or endured alone; as, a solitary journey; a solitary life. "Satan . . . explores his solitary flight."
  • Solitary Single; individual; sole; as, a solitary instance of vengeance; a solitary example.
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• • solitary Living alone, or by one's self or by itself; without companions or associates; habitually inclined to avoid company.
  • solitary All by one's self; without companions; unattended.
  • solitary Marked by solitude; especially, remote from society; unfrequented; retired; secluded; lonely: as, a solitary glen.
  • solitary Free from the sounds of human life; still; dismal.
  • solitary Having a sense of loneliness; lonesome.
  • solitary Retiring; diffident.
  • solitary Passed without company; shared by no companions; lonely.
  • solitary Single; sole; only, or only one: as, a solitary instance; a solitary example.
  • solitary In botany, one only in a place; separate: as, a solitary stipule. A flower is said to be solitary when there is only one on each peduncle, or only one to each plant; a seed, when there is only one in a pericarp.
  • solitary In anatomy, single; separate; not clustered; not agminate or gathered into patches; simple; not compound: as, the solitary follicles of the intestine.
  • solitary In zoöl.:
  • solitary Not social, sociable, or gregarious: noting species living habitually alone, or in pairs only.
  • solitary Simple; not compound, aggregate, or colonial: as, solitary ascidians. See Simplices.
  • n solitary One who lives alone or in solitude; an anchorite; a recluse; a hermit.
  • solitary In astronomy, noting certain stars which have no conspicuous neighbors (a Hydræ, for instance), or stars which are not members of a binary system, visual or spectroscopic. Called by W. Herschel intersystematical.
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• • adj Solitary sol′i-tar-i being the sole person present: alone or lonely: single, separate, simple: living alone, not social or gregarious: without company: remote from society: retired, secluded: gloomy
  • n Solitary one who lives alone: a recluse or hermit—(obs.) Solitā′rian
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• John Wesley

  

  “The Bible knows nothing of solitary religion.”
• Clark Moustakas

  

  “The most dramatic conflicts are perhaps, those that take place not between men but between a man and himself -- where the arena of conflict is a solitary mind.”
• Willa Cather

  

  “Only solitary men know the full joys of friendship. Others have their family --but to a solitary and an exile his friends are everything.”
• Eugene O'Neill

  

  “Life is a solitary cell whose walls are mirrors.”
• Tennessee Williams

  

  “We are all sentenced to solitary confinement inside our own skins, for life.”
• Winston Churchill

  

  “Solitary trees, if they grow at all, grow strong.”

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