Meaning & use
self-reliance
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
The ability to think and act for yourself and meet your own needs without depending on others.
Grammar: Uncountable; used with singular verbs and no plural form.
Patterns
- self-reliance in something
- promote self-reliance
- encourage self-reliance
The course aims to build self-reliance in young adults.
Her self-reliance was clear when she moved abroad alone.
Self-reliance does not mean refusing all help.
noununcountable
A policy or attitude of depending on your own resources rather than on outside help.
Grammar: Often used in political or economic contexts.
Patterns
- economic self-reliance
- national self-reliance
- a move toward self-reliance
The country is pushing for greater economic self-reliance.
Self-reliance became a key theme in the speech.
They see self-reliance as a way to reduce foreign debt.
Common combinations
- promote self-reliance
- The program promotes self-reliance among refugees.
- encourage self-reliance
- Teachers encourage self-reliance by letting students solve problems alone.
- build self-reliance
- Living alone helped him build self-reliance.
- economic self-reliance
- Economic self-reliance is a long-term goal.
Synonyms and how they differ
- independence
- Broader; can mean political freedom or not needing others, while self-reliance stresses personal ability.
- self-sufficiency
- Often focuses on providing your own material needs, such as food or money.
- autonomy
- More formal; means having control over your own decisions, often used for groups or regions.
Opposites
Word family
- self-reliant adjective
- Able to do things for yourself.
- reliance noun
- The state of depending on someone or something.
- rely verb
- To depend on someone or something.
Commonly confused: self-reliance or self-sufficiency?
self-reliance vs self-sufficiency
Self-sufficiency often means producing everything you need yourself, especially food or energy; self-reliance is more about your attitude and skills.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'self-reliance' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Self-reliance is uncountable, so it does not take 'a' or a plural, and it is not used as an adjective after 'is'. 'She shows great self-reliance' is the natural pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “self-reliance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.