a lone wolf

lone wolf

1. Someone who does not seek or like the company of others. Shannon should have known Brad would break her heart—he's a lone wolf who doesn't like getting close to anybody. A: "Does he have any friends at school?" B: "No, I think he's a lone wolf."
2. A terrorist who acts alone or independently of a larger group when carrying out an attack. The attack was carried out by another lone wolf who had no affiliation with terror groups but was inspired by radical postings online.
See also: lone, wolf
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

a lone wolf

A lone wolf is an independent person who likes doing things on their own, rather than doing them with other people. He was also somewhat of a lone wolf, never marrying. Latham's personal style is that of a political lone wolf.
See also: lone, wolf
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

a ˌlone ˈwolf

a person who chooses to work, live, be, etc. alone: In the police force he had the reputation of being something of a lone wolf.
See also: lone, wolf
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
See also:
  • lone wolf
  • seek out
  • between dog and wolf
  • show teeth
  • show your teeth
  • bare (one's) teeth
  • bare one's teeth
  • bare your teeth
  • fine wolf
  • royal road to
References in periodicals archive
As Erik soon realises, being a lone wolf can be too much of a good thing; he discovers also that small young sisters have their uses.
"I liked the fact she's this independent woman and a lone wolf with a real sense of loyalty to the country.
The dead girl's father Mohammed Amin Ansari told Arab News that the government is trying to push the matter under the rug, trying to present Imran Ali as a lone wolf. Ali is currently in police custody.
'They might, I said, opt for something more than just like a similar violent experimentation with a lone wolf, and the trucks you plow in, drive into a crowd and just kill anybody,' he added.
During this workshop, participants will learn about the threat of lone wolf terrorists, individuals who prepare and commit violent acts alone, outside of any command structure and without material assistance from any group; the psychology of a lone wolf actor; and potential means of identification.
Ian McAllister's luminous photographs illustrate the story of a lone wolf who swims to a small island that provides him with everything he needs.
Not so big and not so bad, a lone wolf falls out of his story and is desperate to find his way home again, in The Wolf Who Fell Out of a Book, a fractured fairy tale from Thierry Robberecht.
He said: "The price was to say I was a lone wolf and had strayed off the reservation."
"People say he was a lone wolf," Reuters (http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCAKBN0JV2WT20141218 ) quoted Harper, "It's true he was a single attacker, but it is not necessarily the case that it was only one guy." The Canadian PM was talking with the French-language TVA network.
The memoir follows Ray from his youth through adulthood, as he befriends a lone wolf, who waits patiently for RayAEs return every time Ray leaves the reservation.
"A lone wolf attack is defined as somebody who doesn't appear on anybody's database, who suddenly shows up at your shores does some terrorist acts and then leaves," President Aquino said in a coffee meeting with reporters covering the 25th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit held here.
There wasthe Fort Hood massacre of 13 people by a lone wolf killer shouting Allah Akbar.The convicted killer, Major Nidal Hassen, an Army psychiatrist, is now asking to become a citizen of the terrorist Islamic State.
Now, he has defied the odds and no longer can be called a lone wolf.
Keeley Hawes also joins the team as a quiet, dowdy character with few friends - a lone wolf, if you will.
A web posting claimed the arson "in defense and retaliation for all the innocent animals that have died cruelly at the hands of human oppressors." (381) Apparently, Bond strongly identified with the notion of being a lone wolf. The ATF, working with a confidential informant, recorded Bond discussing the fire and the fact that he actually used the nickname "Lone Wolf." (382) In a jailhouse letter, Bond stated, "I used the name 'ALF Lone Wolf' in the media to convey to my ALF brothers and sisters worldwide (whoever they are) the power of acting alone." (383)