isolate
EYE-suh-layt
/ˈaɪ.sə.leɪt/
To identify or place something or someone completely apart from others; to quarantine.
Often carries a physical, scientific, or medical connotation. It can be done voluntarily (isolating to study) or involuntarily (isolating a patient with a virus).
The story behind the word. Isolate has a beautiful, geographic history. It comes from the Italian word 'isolato', which is derived from the Latin 'insula', meaning 'island'. To isolate someone is, quite literally, to turn them into an island, cut off by deep waters from the mainland of humanity.
Word relationships
- quarantine: Quarantine is specifically used for medical isolation to prevent disease transmission, while isolate is broader and can apply to variables, genes, or people.
- segregate: Segregate implies separating groups of people based on race, class, or gender, often systematically, whereas isolate is individual or scientific.
- integrate: Integrate means to combine or bring together parts into a whole, the opposite of isolating them.
- incorporate: Incorporate means to include something within a larger system or body.
Commonly confused with
- insulate: Insulate means to protect something from heat, cold, noise, or electricity by surrounding it with a barrier, while isolate means to separate it entirely.
Word family
- isolation (noun): The state of being alone or separated from others.
- isolated (adjective): Far away from other places, buildings, or people; remote.
Collocations
- isolate a variable
- isolate a patient
- feel isolated
- completely isolate
Example sentences
- "The hospital had to isolate the infected patients to prevent the virus from spreading through the general ward." A medical protocol during an outbreak.
- "Scientists were finally able to isolate the specific gene responsible for the plant's drought resistance." A scientific breakthrough in chemistry.
Memory hook
Think of an 'island' out in the middle of the ocean. It is completely 'isolated' from the continents. Isolate makes you an island.
When not to use
Do not use when describing a simple emotional coldness where people are still physically together; use 'aloof' or 'alienate' instead.
Fun facts
- The word 'peninsula' shares this root—'paene' (almost) + 'insula' (island), meaning 'almost an island'.
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