INSULAR Synonyms: 60 Similar and Opposite Words

insular

adjective

ˈin(t)-su̇-lər

Definition of insular

as in parochial

not broad or open in views or opinions an insular community that is not receptive of new ideas, especially from outsiders

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of insular The leader of his country’s Socialist Party, Rama came to power in 2013, as Albania was still sloughing off its insular identity. — Isaac Stanley-Becker, The Atlantic, 23 July 2026 But the arts bohemia has been in decline for decades, and today serves mainly as a vehicle for its insular ideologies and agitprop. — Michael Bernick, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026 Meanwhile, the word on Grand Illusion was getting out beyond the insular arthouse crowd. — Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 18 July 2026 Edelman shared the data this week at his firm’s annual Trust Summit in New York, where the question on every leader’s mind was how to build trust in an increasingly insular world. — Diane Brady, Fortune, 17 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for insular

Recent Examples of Synonyms for insular

Adjective

Several residents who spoke at the meetings characterized the opposition as a vocal minority of residents who have fixated on a few mostly parochial issues.

— John Moritz, Hartford Courant, 1 Aug. 2026
All but one, Pulaski Academy in Little Rock, were either parochial or had some religious affiliation.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 25 July 2026

Definition of parochial

Adjective

These vines will also happily wind their way around tree trunks and shrubs and fix themselves in place with small rootlets that take on a hairy appearance as poison ivy plants mature.

— Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2026
Tidy a corner and play a favorite song, letting a small routine remind everyone that care comes through simple, repeatable acts.

— Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of small

Adjective

And yet the office—its smells and politics, its grievances petty, existential, or edifying—must have made an impression.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2026
Look no further for a wake up call than these three actors representing House Hightower, powerful and imposing in their own right, but just as catty and petty as the Lannisters at the end of the day.

— Josh Wigler, HollywoodReporter, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of petty

Adjective

Totality — when the sun is completely obscured — is only visible within the narrow path of the moon's shadow.

— Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 10 Aug. 2026
The part east of West Broadway that bleeds into the grit of the Financial District, the skyscrapers so tall and the streets so narrow that sunlight doesn’t reach much at all.

— Elise Taylor, Vanity Fair, 10 Aug. 2026