Antisocial

How to spell antisocial

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce antisocial

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does antisocial mean?

1. adjectiveContrary to the accepted standards of behaviour in a community; causing harm or nuisance to others.
2. adjectiveNot wanting the company of others; preferring to stay apart from social activity.

Antisocial in a sentence

• The council issued a warning about antisocial behaviour near the shops.

• After a long week at work he felt thoroughly antisocial and skipped the party.

• Vandalism and littering are treated as antisocial acts in the new bylaw.

• She is not unfriendly, just a little antisocial at large gatherings.

Where does antisocial come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word joins the Greek prefix anti-, meaning 'against' or 'opposed to', with 'social', which descends from the Latin socialis, 'of companionship', built on socius, meaning 'companion' or 'ally'. So the literal sense is 'against companionship' or 'opposed to society'. The term was coined in the late 1700s and gained currency through the 1800s, first describing attitudes or actions hostile to the smooth running of organised society. Over time a softer everyday meaning grew up alongside it, simply describing someone who avoids the company of others. The spelling trap lives in the middle and end: a single 's' after 'anti', and the Latin 'soci' root softening into the '-cial' ending rather than the '-tial' or '-sial' a writer might expect.

How the word is built

• anti- (against)
• soci (companion, society)
• -al (adjective suffix)