- sol´i|tar´i|ly
- sol|i|tar|y «SOL uh TEHR ee», adjective, noun, plural -tar|ies.–adj.1. a) alone or single; only: »
A solitary rider was seen in the distance.
SYNONYM(S): lone, sole. b) being the only one; standing by itself; unparalleled: »not a single, solitary exception to the rule. The result, not of solitary conjecture, but of practice and experience (Samuel Johnson).
2. a) without companions; lonely: »The trapper leads a solitary life in the mountains. Secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster (Dickens).
SYNONYM(S): unattended. b) away from people; remote; secluded: »The house is in a solitary spot miles from town.
3. a) Zoology. living alone, rather than in colonies: »a solitary bee.
b) Botany. growing separately; not forming clusters: »a solitary stipule.
–n.1. a person living alone, away from people.2. a person who is left alone: »An orphan and a solitary whose mother's death…had amounted to a tragedy (Arnold Bennett).
3. = solitary confinement. (Cf. ↑solitary confinement)╂[< Latin sōlitārius, ultimately < sōlus alone. See etym. of doublet solitaire. (Cf. ↑solitaire)]–sol´i|tar´i|ly, adverb.–sol´i|tar´i|ness, noun.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.