1
as in angering
to cause to change from friendly or loving to unfriendly or uncaring
her changed position on the issue surprised and alienated many of her supporters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ceding
to give over the legal possession or ownership of
landowners have a right to alienate their right of ownership—in other words, they can sell the land if they want to
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in displeasing
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of alienating
Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
The constant stream of news about the chaos of the economy can be both disturbing and alienating, but Rodgers points out that staying connected with others can be crucial during the present political climate.
—Essence, 7 Aug. 2025
Judy Berman, Time, 15 Sep. 2025
Who keeps alienating America’s brothers-in-arms, most recently by ending training programs in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, NATO’s front line facing Russia.
—Andreas Kluth, Twin Cities, 11 Sep. 2025
Evidence showed Lachlan feared alienating core Fox viewers — which is to say pro-Trump voters — by confronting them too directly with the facts that President Joe Biden squarely won the election.
—Bill Chappell, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025
In attempting to attract Reform voters, Labour risks alienating its own progressive base, Anand Menon, a professor of European politics at King’s College London, told CNN.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 7 Sep. 2025
Plainly on the hunt for younger diners, Felss Masino succeeded mainly in alienating older ones.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
Yet Kohl’s needs to figure out how to broaden its appeal and generate greater traffic in its stores and online, without alienating its core customers.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2025
Additionally, a settlement negotiated solely between the state and the PKK risks alienating those most affected by decades of violence.
—Alpaslan Ozerdem, The Conversation, 2 Sep. 2025
Broadcom has delivered on its promise to investors in the near term, but sustaining momentum without further alienating its customer base will determine whether this high-stakes bet pays off in the long run.
—Steve McDowell, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Verb
Their approach is assertive and inviting rather than aggressive and alienating.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
The constant stream of news about the chaos of the economy can be both disturbing and alienating, but Rodgers points out that staying connected with others can be crucial during the present political climate.
—Essence, 7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
An affable dad who avoids divisive topics like politics and religion in favor of gentler, autobiographical material that tends to cast him as a well-meaning fool, the Tennessee native is also the rare comic capable of appealing to, or at least not actively alienating, a broad swathe of viewers.
—Judy Berman, Time, 15 Sep. 2025
Who keeps alienating America’s brothers-in-arms, most recently by ending training programs in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, NATO’s front line facing Russia.
—Andreas Kluth, Twin Cities, 11 Sep. 2025
Evidence showed Lachlan feared alienating core Fox viewers — which is to say pro-Trump voters — by confronting them too directly with the facts that President Joe Biden squarely won the election.
—Bill Chappell, NPR, 10 Sep. 2025
In attempting to attract Reform voters, Labour risks alienating its own progressive base, Anand Menon, a professor of European politics at King’s College London, told CNN.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 7 Sep. 2025
Plainly on the hunt for younger diners, Felss Masino succeeded mainly in alienating older ones.
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
Yet Kohl’s needs to figure out how to broaden its appeal and generate greater traffic in its stores and online, without alienating its core customers.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2025
Additionally, a settlement negotiated solely between the state and the PKK risks alienating those most affected by decades of violence.
—Alpaslan Ozerdem, The Conversation, 2 Sep. 2025
Broadcom has delivered on its promise to investors in the near term, but sustaining momentum without further alienating its customer base will determine whether this high-stakes bet pays off in the long run.
—Steve McDowell, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alienating
Verb
-
Declaring bankruptcy allowed the church to freeze all of its pending lawsuits, angering victims’ attorneys who repeatedly have accused Bishop Michael Barber of trying to stall.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Lawyers at Walsh Gallegos coordinated two releases of emails and other documents on behalf of the school board, but CNN reported how gaping holes remained, surprising and angering board members.—
Shimon Prokupecz,
CNN Money,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Firms that fail to shine light on their dark data risk ceding the high ground in insights and inviting risk exposures lurking in unindexed archives.—
Daniel Fallmann,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
The document also prohibits any leader from ceding Ukrainian land, Farkas said during a recent interview with the Tribune.—
Angie Leventis Lourgos,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Stopping The Scammers But alongside legitimate fundraisers there are many scammers with fake appeals, sucking money away from the frontline and infuriating fighters trying to get money for a new truck or drone jammer.—
David Hambling,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
-
The lack of development from the teams tops prospects has been infuriating.—
Dom Luszczyszyn,
New York Times,
20 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The statement and other means of policy communication also figured importantly in conveying that understanding to the public and helping to anchor inflation expectations, thereby supporting the effective transmission of monetary policy.—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
The Anthem spot will kick off the campaign with the goal of conveying that something new is happening at Ford, Materazzo said.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
So, how can an organization remain current on customers' ever-changing needs and expectations without annoying or estranging them?—
Chip Bell,
Forbes.com,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
From there, traders are assigning a better than 70% chance of cuts in both October and December, according to the CME Group's FedWatch Tool, which gauges rate cut probabilities using 30-day fed funds futures contract prices.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
16 Sep. 2025
-
People are assigning themselves homework to combat brain rot and improve their attention spans.—
Daniel Wine,
CNN Money,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Or enraging if your name is Marco Silva.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
17 Aug. 2025
-
Dougal brought his brother home, enraging Jacob, who couldn’t believe his sons had abandoned the raid.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Weighing just over 1 oz (30 g) and about the size of a film roll, the tiny Charmera features a viewfinder, an LCD screen, a Type-C port for charging and transferring your shots, a flash, and a microSD card slot for up to 128 GB of storage.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
15 Sep. 2025
-
These negotiations quickly transitioned to Iamaleava’s ticket out of town, transferring to UCLA for a greater payday.—
Tyler Small,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Alienating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alienating. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share