Meaning & use
insular
Last updated
Narrow-minded or isolated, unwilling to accept new or different ideas; also, relating to or characteristic of an island.
See it in a sentence
Critics accused the small town's leaders of having an insular attitude toward outsiders.
Growing up on a remote island gave her a somewhat insular view of the wider world.
A note on using this word
Insular originally described islands but is now used mostly in its figurative sense to criticize a closed-off or provincial mindset.
Words with a similar meaning
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
cosmopolitanopen-minded
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