lone

1 of 2

adjective

ˈlōn 

1

a

: having no company : solitary

b

: preferring solitude

2

: only, sole

3

: situated by itself : isolated

loneness

ˈlōn-nəs 

noun

loneness

2 of 2

noun

lone·​ness

plural -es

: the quality or state of being lone : isolation

space that was absolute meaninglessness and absolute cold, and absolute dark loneness

—Waldo Frank

to face the loneness of their days

—Marsden Hartley

Synonyms of lone

Adjective

• only
• one
• sole
• solitary

Choose the Right Synonym for lone

alone, solitary, lonely, lonesome, lone, forlorn, desolate mean isolated from others.

alone stresses the objective fact of being by oneself with slighter notion of emotional involvement than most of the remaining terms.

everyone needs to be alone sometimes

solitary may indicate isolation as a chosen course

glorying in the calm of her solitary life

but more often it suggests sadness and a sense of loss.

left solitary by the death of his wife

lonely adds to solitary a suggestion of longing for companionship.

felt lonely and forsaken

lonesome heightens the suggestion of sadness and poignancy.

an only child often leads a lonesome life

lone may replace lonely or lonesome but typically is as objective as alone.

a lone robin pecking at the lawn

forlorn stresses dejection, woe, and listlessness at separation from one held dear.

a forlorn lost child

desolate implies inconsolable grief at loss or bereavement.

desolate after her brother's death

Examples of lone in a Sentence

Adjective

the lone ripe apple in the entire bag

just one lone cow in the middle of the field

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Players step into the role of Shade, a lone racer dreaming of glory and revenge. — Tanya Fedak, Variety, 6 Oct. 2026

The lone run of the game came in the third inning when Jonathan Aranda hit a homer off of Gerrit Cole. — David Troy Outkick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Max Muncy’s ninth-inning homer was the Dodgers’ lone late threat; the series now moves to Atlanta, where Chris Sale is scheduled to start Game 3. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026

Quarterback Jaden Craig finished with 187 passing yards, one touchdown and an interception, with his errant second-quarter pass returned to the TCU 16 to set up BYU’s lone first-half touchdown. — Steven Johnson. Story Produced With Ai Assistance, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, short for alone

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing lone

• lone ranger
• lone star tick
• lone wolf
• plough a lone/lonely furrow

Rhymes for lone

• blown
• clone
• cone
• crone
• drone
• flown
• groan
• grown
• hone
• joan
• jone
• known

Kids Definition

lone

adjective

ˈlōn 

1

: having no company : solitary

a lone traveler

2

: situated by itself

a lone outpost