MEANING
A loss of closeness or friendly relations between people formerly connected.
Use it for
Divided households, absent relatives, relationships broken before a death.Make absence relational even when people occupy the same building.
Words that belong together
- family estrangement
- years of estrangement
- estrangement from a parent
On the page
Their estrangement began long before the disputed will.
A letter ended twenty years of estrangement.
They lived under one roof, careful not to mention their estrangement.
Nearby words
Opposite meanings
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- estrangement
Usage notes
Primary category: gothic. Often family or partners; describes relational separation, not necessarily physical distance. Uncountable generally; plural estrangements for separate ruptures.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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