ENGLISH
REFERENCE

on my own

prep. phr..
B1 Intermediate Oxford

prep. phr.. to be alone or to do something without any help from other people.

prep. phr.. functioning as an adverbial or adjectival phrase to indicate solitude or independence; often used to emphasize self-reliance.


SIMPLE

I like living on my own.

CONTEXTUAL

She managed to fix the broken sink on her own without calling a plumber.

COMPLEX

After years of working for a large firm, he decided to start a consultancy on his own to gain more creative freedom.

Usage

the possessive adjective (my, your, his, her, our, their) must change to match the subject.

Teaching tip

contrast with 'by myself'; while often interchangeable, 'on my own' can more strongly imply independence and a lack of external support rather than just physical solitude.

Pitfall

I did it on my self.I did it on my own.the phrase is 'on my own' or 'by myself'; you cannot mix the preposition 'on' with a reflexive pronoun like 'myself'.

© 2026 English Reference