iso·late ˈī-sə-ˌlāt 
also ˈi-
isolated; isolating
1
: to set apart from others
also : quarantine
2
: to select from among others
especially : to separate from another substance so as to obtain pure or in a free state
3
: insulate
1
: an individual, population, strain, or culture obtained by or resulting from selection or separation
2
: an individual socially withdrawn or removed from society
Examples of isolate in a Sentence
Verb These policies will only serve to isolate the country politically and economically. Certain patients must be isolated in a separate ward. When he wants to work, he isolates himself in his office and won't talk to anyone. Scientists have isolated the gene that causes the disease. Noun interpersonal relationships are very stressful for him, so he lives as a virtual isolate
Recent Examples on the Web
Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 20 Apr. 2026 But even dwarf galaxies that are floating alone in the cosmic void, isolated from the gravitational harassment of their larger neighbors, still evolve toward this attractor through their own internal heating. —Paul Sutter, Space.com, 20 Apr. 2026
Randi Gollin, Martha Stewart, 13 Apr. 2026 His documentary plunges viewers into a 1996 expedition in Brazil to contact the isolate Indigenous Koruba people in the Amazon rainforest. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for isolate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
In 2022, authorities exhumed McBride’s body for additional DNA testing, a step New Jersey State Police said was critical to isolating an unknown male DNA profile from earlier evidence. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 20 Apr. 2026 But even dwarf galaxies that are floating alone in the cosmic void, isolated from the gravitational harassment of their larger neighbors, still evolve toward this attractor through their own internal heating. —Paul Sutter, Space.com, 20 Apr. 2026
Noun
Types of Pea Protein Many products contain pea protein isolate, concentrate, or both. —Randi Gollin, Martha Stewart, 13 Apr. 2026 His documentary plunges viewers into a 1996 expedition in Brazil to contact the isolate Indigenous Koruba people in the Amazon rainforest. —Matthew Carey, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for isolate
Cite this Entry
“Isolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/isolate. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
isolate
1 of 2 transitive verb
iso·late ˈī-sə-ˌlāt
isolated; isolating
: to set apart from others: as
a
: to separate (one with a contagious disease) from others not similarly infected
b
: to separate (as a chemical compound) from all other substances : obtain pure or in a free state
1
: an individual (as a spore or single organism), a viable part of an organism (as a cell), or a strain that has been isolated (as from diseased tissue, contaminated water, or the air)
also : a pure culture produced from such an isolate
2
: a relatively homogeneous population separated from related populations by geographic, biologic, or social factors or by human intervention
3
: a socially withdrawn individual
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