verb
entfremden
alienate
Definition & meaning
The verb entfremden generally means to alienate or to estrange. It describes the process of causing someone to lose their feeling of belonging, attachment, or affection toward a person, a group, or a place.
There are two primary ways this word is used:
- Interpersonal alienation: To cause someone to lose their emotional bond with another person or group, often leading to distance or a breakdown in a relationship (e.g., "The argument alienated the siblings from each other").
- Loss of familiarity: To make something seem strange, foreign, or unfamiliar. This can also refer to the psychological or philosophical state where an individual feels disconnected from their own work, society, or nature, a concept famously explored as "alienation" (Entfremdung) in sociology and philosophy.
Grammar & Word origin
entfremden is a separable, weak (regular) verb.
- Conjugation: entfremdet (present), entfremdete (past), hat entfremdet (perfect).
- Reflexive usage: It is very commonly used as a reflexive verb: sich entfremden (to grow apart).
- Origin: It is derived from the prefix ent- (indicating a removal or departure from a state) and the adjective fremd (strange/foreign). Essentially, it means "to make something that was familiar into something foreign."
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonyms:
- distanzieren (to distance)
- entfremdet (the participle used as an adjective)
- auseinanderleben (to grow apart)
- entfremden (as in to alienate)
Antonyms:
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Examples
Er fühlt sich, als würde er sich von seiner Familie entfremden.verb
He feels as if he is becoming alienated from his family.
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