- the act of isolating or the condition of being isolated
- (of a country, party, etc) nonparticipation in or withdrawal from international politics
- social separation of a person who has or is suspected of having a contagious disease
Compare quarantine - (as modifier): an isolation hospital
- a lack of contact between persons, groups, or whole societies
- the failure of an individual to maintain contact with others or genuine communication where interaction with others persists
- Also called: isolation exercise a physical exercise that is designed to benefit a single joint or muscle group
- in isolation ⇒ without regard to context, similar matters, etc
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
i•so•la•tion
(ī′sə lā′shən, is′ə-),USA pronunciation n.
- an act or instance of isolating.
- the state of being isolated.
- the complete separation from others of a person suffering from contagious or infectious disease;
quarantine. - Governmentthe separation of a nation from other nations by isolationism.
- Psychologya process whereby an idea or memory is divested of its emotional component.
- SociologySee social isolation.
- isolate + -ion 1825–35
- 2. See solitude. 3. segregation.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
isolation /ˌaɪsəˈleɪʃən/ n
'in isolation' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
barrier-nurse
- bushed
- detail
- event
- isolation
- monopole
- quark
- sanatorium
- segment
- synthetic phonics
- citation form
- dependent
- in vacuo
- main
- word stress
- social
- society
- solitude