loner
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loner
A person who prefers to be alone or do things by themselves rather than be in the company of others.
Er war schon immer ein Einzelgänger und hatte nur wenige enge Freunde.
He had always been a loner and had only a few close friends.
solitary animal
In zoology, an animal that typically lives alone and not in a group, pack, or herd.
Der Tiger ist, anders als der Löwe, ein Einzelgänger.
The tiger, unlike the lion, is a solitary animal.
The word is made up of 'einzel' (alone, individual) and 'Gänger' (someone who walks/goes). An 'Einzelgänger' (loner) is therefore literally a person or animal that goes its own way alone.
Er geht am liebsten allein wandern, er ist ein echter Einzelgänger.
He prefers to go hiking alone; he's a real loner.
You can easily tell from the context whether a person or an animal is meant. In conversations about psychology, friendship, or character, it refers to people. In texts about biology or nature documentaries, it refers to animals.
In der neuen Klasse fand er nur schwer Anschluss und blieb ein Einzelgänger.
In the new class, he found it hard to connect with others and remained a loner.
When the word describes a person, it often has a slightly melancholic or distant connotation. It can mean neutral independence, but it rarely describes a purely positive, sociable trait.
Manche halten ihn für arrogant, aber er ist einfach nur ein Einzelgänger.
Some people think he's arrogant, but he's simply a loner.
outsider / underdog
An Außenseiter belongs to a group only partly, often because others do not integrate them. An Einzelgänger, on the other hand, usually chooses to remain alone and prefers peace and quiet or doing things independently. Use Außenseiter when someone lacks inclusion and Einzelgänger when being alone is a conscious choice.
Obwohl seine Kollegen ihn einluden, blieb er im Büro lieber ein Einzelgänger.
Although his colleagues invited him, he preferred to remain a loner at the office.
Weil seine Kollegen ihn nicht zu gemeinsamen Pausen einluden, war er im Büro ein Außenseiter.
Because his colleagues did not invite him to join them during breaks, he was an outsider at the office.
