adj.
- done or existing alone.
▸(of a bee, wasp, etc.) not social or colonial.
- secluded or isolated.
-
[often with neg.]
single; only.
- (of a flower or other part) borne singly.
n.
(pl. solitaries)
- a recluse or hermit.
- informal solitary confinement.
Derivative
- solitarily adv.
- solitariness n.
Etymology
ME: from L. solitarius, from solus ‘alone’.