Meaning & use

estrange

verb·Advanced

To cause someone, especially a family member, to become unfriendly or emotionally distant.

See it in a sentence

Years of unresolved conflict eventually estranged the two brothers from each other.

She became estranged from her parents after moving abroad without telling them.

A note on using this word

Estrange is most often used in the passive, as estranged from, describing a relationship between relatives or spouses that has broken down.

Words with a similar meaning

alienatedistance

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

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