aloof

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   distant or reserved in manner; not friendly or forthcoming

   The new colleague remained aloof, eating lunch alone each day.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Aloof began in the mid-16th century as a nautical expression meaning “to windward,” used in an order to steer a ship as close to the wind as possible and thereby keep clear of the shore. Loof was an old word for the windward direction. Within a few years, aloof acquired its figurative sense of remaining apart or uninvolved.

Originally a nautical term, from a- ('to, toward') + loof ('windward direction', luff), from Dutch loef ('weather side of a ship'); literally 'to windward', hence 'at a distance'.

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