# aloof

Pronunciation: US say "uh-LOOF" /əˈluːf/; UK

## Adjective

1. Reserved and remote in manner, keeping other people at a distance, whether physically or emotionally.
   - Simple: Keeping a distance from other people and not showing much warmth or feeling.
   - _He was a polite but rather aloof neighbor who rarely stopped to chat._
   - _Reporters found the star cool and aloof during the press tour._

## Adverb

2. At or from a distance, though a small one or one still within view; apart or away from others.
   - Simple: Away from others, at a short distance or where you can still see them.
   - _The church stands aloof from the busy square, behind a row of tall trees._
   - _A few parents held aloof at the edge of the playground while the children played._
3. In an unsympathetic or unfavorable way.
   - Simple: In a cold way that shows no kindness or approval.

## Preposition

4. Used before a noun to mean away from, or clear of, the thing named. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Used before a noun to mean away from it and out of its way.

## Origin

Middle English loof meant "weather gage, windward direction" and probably came from Middle Dutch (Dutch loef means "the ship's weather side"). Aloof began as a sailing command to hold the ship's head into the wind and so keep clear of a lee shore, and the figurative sense "at a distance, apart" grew out of that.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/aloof (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).