abalienate
- 01 C2 Proficiency
to give or sell your property or rights to another person.
To transfer the title or ownership of property from one person to another. Transitive; primarily found in historical legal contexts.
Simple“The lord chose to abalienate his lands to the local monastery.”
In context“The ancient statutes dictated that the monarch could not abalienate crown lands without the express consent of the high council.”
Teacher's tipThis term is almost entirely replaced by 'alienate' or 'transfer' in modern legal English; it is best reserved for reading historical texts.
- 02 C2 Proficiency
to make someone stop feeling friendly or connected to you.
To cause a person to become unfriendly or indifferent; to estrange in affection or loyalty.
Simple“His cold behavior began to abalienate his closest friends.”
In context“The king's increasingly erratic demands served only to abalienate his most loyal subjects, driving them toward the rebel cause.”
Teacher's tipModern speakers use 'alienate' or 'estrange' for this concept; 'abalienate' in this sense is considered obsolete.
- 03 C2 Proficiency
to cause someone to lose their mind or ability to think clearly.
To cause the loss or perversion of mental faculties or intellect.
Simple“The high fever seemed to abalienate his mind for several days.”
In context“Medical texts of the era suggested that certain toxins could abalienate the intellect, leaving the patient in a state of permanent confusion.”
Teacher's tipThis sense is obsolete and only appears in very old medical or philosophical writing.
Synonymsderangeunsettle
The verb is transitive and requires a direct object, typically a piece of property or a title.
From Latin abaliēnātus, perfect passive participle of abaliēnō (“alienate; remove”); from ab- (“by, from; away”) + aliēnō (“alienate, estrange”); from aliēnus (“foreign, alien”), from alius (“other, another”). Equivalent to ab- + alienate.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.