Aloof
/əˈluːf/noun
Not friendly or forthcoming; distant in manner or feeling.
Did you know?The word came into English from nautical language, where being “aloof” meant steering a ship upwind or away from danger, and that physical distance later became emotional distance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*luftaz
“air, sky, open space”
Old English
OE
on lūfe
“to windward; toward the wind”
Middle Dutch
MDu
te loef
“to windward, upwind”
15th Century
English
a loof
“to windward; in a position away from the wind”
16th–17th Century
English
aloof
“at a distance; apart”
Modern English
English
aloof
“emotionally distant or detached”