Alienate

To cause someone to feel isolated or estranged; to transfer ownership or rights to another party (less common in everyday usage).

verb

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Imagine This

Imagine a close-knit group where a manager repeatedly criticizes a member in public. Over time, that person stops joining meetings, feels left out, and slowly withdraws because they’ve been pushed away and made to feel like an outsider.

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Sounds Like

AY-lee-uh-nayt

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Looks Like

alien + ate

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Remember This

Alienate literally means to create distance or foreignness between people. The social sense (to make someone feel alien) is far more common in SAT contexts than the legal sense of transferring ownership.

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Other Forms

alienationnoun

alienatornoun

alienatedadjective

alienatingadjective

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Connect With

estrange, distance, isolate, disaffect; alienation; ostracize

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Note

Usages: 1) social/relational estrangement (most common on SAT). 2) legal transfer of ownership (rare outside law contexts). Do not confuse with ‘isolate’; alienate emphasizes causing someone to feel estranged rather than merely being separated.

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Study Deeper

Examples

The manager's harsh criticism alienated several employees and damaged team morale.
Her aloof attitude alienated her from her friends after the argument.

Synonyms

estrangedistanceisolatedisaffect

Antonyms

befriendincludeembrace

Etymology

From Latin alienare 'to transfer ownership' from alienus 'foreign, other'; the sense evolved to mean making someone feel foreign or estranged in social relationships.

Mnemonic

Mnemonic: ALIENATE = A LIEN EATe. Remember that to alienate is to push someone away, making them feel like a foreigner—an 'alien' who is no longer part of your circle.