Synonyms

estrangement

American

[ih-streynj-muhnt] / ɪˈstreɪndʒ mənt /

noun

the state of being alienated or separated in feeling or affection; a state of hostility or unfriendliness.

Since the summer there’s been a rift in the family over something that my daughter posted online, and I still can't figure out how this estrangement occurred over something so silly.
Diplomatic relations between the two nations were officially restored after more than five decades of estrangement.
the state of being separated or removed.

After years of forced estrangement, the families of people living in the vast refugee camp are finally beginning to get some news of their relatives there.

Other Word Forms

self-estrangement noun

Etymology

Origin of estrangement

estrange ( def. ) + -ment ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“We Don’t Talk” appears to address her estrangement from her older sister, Haylie, while “Weather for Tennis” describes her tendency to keep the peace as a child of divorce.

From Los Angeles Times

To help families avoid a rift, I reached out to Joshua Coleman, a psychologist and senior fellow at the Council on Contemporary Families and an expert on how to avoid and repair estrangements.

From The Wall Street Journal

Danni and Jordan are both keen to stress that estrangement can sometimes be necessary.

From BBC

In these verses, Hardy returns to their courtship in Cornwall, their later estrangement and Emma’s solitary last drive when “you passed the spot / Where eight days later you were to lie.”

From The Wall Street Journal

One study, published in the Journal of Marriage and Family, found that 6% of respondents reported an estrangement from their mothers, while 26% reported broken ties with their fathers.

From MarketWatch

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023