solitude

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   Aloneness; the state of being alone, solitary, or by oneself.

   Now the New Year reviving old Desires, The thoughtful Soul to Solitude retires, Where the White Hand of Moses on the Bough Puts out, and Jesus from the Ground suspires.

2. 2
   noun

   A lonely or deserted place.

   Mark where his carnage and his conquests cease! He makes a solitude, and calls it — peace.

3. 3
   noun

   a solitary place

4. 4
   noun

   the state or situation of being alone

5. 5
   noun

   a state of social isolation

Etymology

From Middle English solitude, from Old French solitude. By surface analysis, sole + -itude.