alone

Meanings

1. 1adjectiveafter a verb

   With nobody else present or with you; on your own.

   Grammar: Used after a verb like be or feel, not before a noun: she was alone, not an alone girl.

   Patterns

   • be alone
   • feel alone
   • leave someone alone

   I like being alone when I need to think.

   She was alone in the house for the whole weekend.

   He felt alone even in a crowded room.

2. 2adverbnot comparable

   Without help or company; by yourself.

   Grammar: Follows the verb: she travelled alone.

   Patterns

   • live alone
   • travel alone
   • stand alone

   He climbed the mountain alone.

   Many students live alone for the first time at university.

   Nobody could carry that table alone.

3. 3adverbnot comparable

   Used after a noun or pronoun to show that it is the only thing involved or needed.

   Grammar: Comes straight after the noun it limits: the cost alone is a problem.

   Patterns

   • something alone
   • you alone

   The price alone put me off buying it.

   Money alone cannot make people happy.

   You alone know where the key is.

Common combinations

all alone

The puppy was all alone in the garden.

leave someone alone

Please leave me alone while I study.

go it alone

After the partnership ended, she decided to go it alone.

let alone

I can't afford a bike, let alone a car.

stand alone

Each chapter can stand alone as a short story.

Synonyms and how they differ

solitary

Solitary can go before a noun and often describes a person or habit, while alone cannot be placed there.

lonely

Lonely means feeling sad about being without company, whereas alone only states the fact.

unaccompanied

Unaccompanied is formal and stresses that no one is with you, such as an unaccompanied child.

solo

Solo is used for a single performer or traveller doing something, and it sounds more active than alone.

Opposites

Word family

lonely adjective

sad because you have no company

loneliness noun

the sad feeling of being on your own

lone adjective

single, used before a noun, as in a lone walker

lonesome adjective

lonely, often in a gentle or old-fashioned way

Commonly confused: alone or lonely?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “alone”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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