French Conversation · Level 53
75 words
French word
isoler
Pronunciation
IPA/izole/
Meaning
- verbisolate
Example
Il faut isoler le patient contagieux.
The contagious patient must be isolated.
More examples
La police a isolé le suspect pour l'interroger.
The police isolated the suspect to question him.
Core concept
A person or thing stands behind a boundary, separated from surrounding contact and influence.
Common phrases
isoler quelqu'un
isolate someone
isoler un cas suspect
isolate a suspected case
Similar words
séparer: Dividing a group or whole into separate parts.
couper: Breaking a physical or functional connection or line of communication.
s'isoler: Withdrawing from others to spend time alone.
exclure: Preventing a particular person from entering or belonging to a group or place.
Definition in French
Mettre quelqu'un ou quelque chose à l'écart pour le rendre indépendant du reste en empêchant toute influence.
Word origin
French isoler comes through Italian isolare from Latin insula, 'island', and developed the sense of making something island-like and separate.
Usage tips
- The transitive isoler separates someone or something, whereas s'isoler describes the subject withdrawing or becoming separate.
Other meanings
- insulateverb
Opposites
- réunirbring togetherverb
- rassemblergather togetherverb