Solitude

Solitude
Solitude Sol"i*tude, n. [F., from L. solitudo, solus alone. See {Sole}, a.] 1. state of being alone, or withdrawn from society; a lonely life; loneliness. [1913 Webster]

Whosoever is delighted with solitude is either a wild beast or a god. --Bacon. [1913 Webster]

O Solitude! where are the charms That sages have seen in thy face? --Cowper. [1913 Webster]

2. Remoteness from society; destitution of company; seclusion; -- said of places; as, the solitude of a wood. [1913 Webster]

The solitude of his little parish is become matter of great comfort to him. --Law. [1913 Webster]

3. solitary or lonely place; a desert or wilderness. [1913 Webster]

In these deep solitudes and awful cells Where heavenly pensive contemplation dwells. --Pope. [1913 Webster]

Syn: Syn. Loneliness; soitariness; loneness; retiredness; recluseness. -- {Solitude}, {Retirement}, {Seclusion}, {Loneliness}.

Usage: Retirement is a withdrawal from general society, implying that a person has been engaged in its scenes. Solitude describes the fact that a person is alone; seclusion, that he is shut out from others, usually by his own choice; loneliness, that he feels the pain and oppression of being alone. Hence, retirement is opposed to a gay, active, or public life; solitude, to society; seclusion, to freedom of access on the part of others; and loneliness, enjoyment of that society which the heart demands. [1913 Webster]

O blest retirement, friend to life's decline. --Goldsmith. [1913 Webster]

Such only can enjoy the country who are capable of thinking when they are there; then they are prepared for solitude; and in that [the country] solitude is prepared for them. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]

It is a place of seclusion from the external world. --Bp. Horsley. [1913 Webster]

These evils . . . seem likely to reduce it [a city] ere long to the loneliness and the insignificance of a village. --Eustace. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • solitude — [ sɔlityd ] n. f. • 1393; « état d un lieu désert » 1213; lat. solitudo 1 ♦ Situation d une personne qui est seule, de façon momentanée ou durable. ⇒ isolement. La solitude lui pèse. « La Solitude seule est la source des inspirations. La solitude …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • solitude — Solitude. s. f. Estat d un homme qui est seul, & retiré du commerce du monde. Il aime la solitude. il ne sçauroit souffrir la solitude. Il signifie aussi, Lieu esloigné du commerce, de la veuë, de la frequentation des hommes. Affreuse solitude.… …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • Solitude — is a state of seclusion or isolation, i.e. lack of contact with people or love. It may stem from bad relationships, deliberate choice, contagious disease, disfiguring features, repulsive personal habits, mental illness, or circumstances of… …   Wikipedia

  • solitude — solitude, isolation, alienation, seclusion mean the state of one that is alone. Solitude applies not only to a physical condition where there are no others of one s kind with whom one can associate {this man [the lighthouse keeper] in his wild… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • solitude — late 14c., from O.Fr. solitude loneliness, from L. solitudinem (nom. solitudo) loneliness, from solus alone (see SOLE (Cf. sole) (adj.)). Not in common use in English until the 17th c. [OED] A man can be himself only so long as he is alone; ...… …   Etymology dictionary

  • solitude — [säl′ə to͞od΄, säl′ətyo͞od΄] n. [ME < MFr < L solitudo < solus, alone, SOLE2] 1. the state of being solitary, or alone; seclusion, isolation, or remoteness 2. a lonely or secluded place solitudinous [säl′əto͞od′ n əs, säl′ətyo͞od′ n əs]… …   English World dictionary

  • Solitude — (fr., spr. Solitühd), 1) Einsamkeit, Einöde; 2) württembergische Domäne u. Lustschloß bei Leonberg, s.d. 4) …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Solitüde — (franz., »Einsamkeit«), öfters Name von Lustschlössern. Besonders bekannt ist die S. bei Stuttgart. 500 m ü. M., 1763–67 von Herzog Karl erbaut und 1770–75 Sitz der durch Schiller berühmt gewordenen Karlsschule (s. d.). Dabei eine Wirtschaft mit… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Solitude — (frz., spr. tühd), Einsamkeit, häufig Name von Lustschlössern …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Solitude — (–tüd), frz., Einsamkeit; Name mehrer Luftschlösser z.B. bei Ludwigsburg, der erste Sitz der Karlsschule, gegenwärtig Sitz eines pietistischen Instituts …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

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