orphan

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

My own grandmother came here as an orphan when she was 6 or 7 years old.

From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026

They moved on to the titular boxer in "Creed," tormented by his father's legacy, and the villainous Killmonger of "Black Panther," traumatized by being an orphan in a racist world.

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

And it’s incredibly unfair that Renee Good is dead, that her wife is a widow and her son an orphan.

From Salon • Jan. 14, 2026

Grainier was an orphan who was sent to Idaho “at the age of six, or possibly seven,” as Mr. Patton tells us.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025

Had Violet signed the marriage contract with her right hand, the law would have made her a miserable contessa, but because she signed it with her left, she remained, to her relief, a miserable orphan.

From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket