self-reliance

self-reliance — noun

1. The ability to manage your own life, solve your own problems, and make your own

1.nounC2
Definition

The ability to manage your own life, solve your own problems, and make your own decisions without relying on others.

Example

After years of living with her parents, Trang finally learned the value of self-reliance.

collocation: learned the value of self-reliance

The school's outdoor program teaches young people self-reliance through camping and hiking trips.

collocation: teaches + self-reliance

Common collocations
  • learn self-reliance
  • teach self-reliance
  • value self-reliance
  • develop self-reliance
  • a spirit of self-reliance
  • a sense of self-reliance
  • a test of self-reliance
Synonyms
  • independence

    broader in meaning; self-reliance specifically refers to managing one's own affairs, while independence can refer to political or financial freedom

  • self-sufficiency

    often focuses on meeting basic needs (food, money, shelter) without outside help, whereas self-reliance includes decision-making

  • autonomy

    more formal; implies the right or power to make one's own rules and decisions

Antonyms
  • dependence

    the state of needing others for help or support

  • helplessness

    the inability to act or cope without assistance

Usage Note

This noun is uncountable and is frequently used after verbs such as 'learn', 'teach', 'value', 'develop', and 'test'. It also appears in phrases like 'a spirit of self-reliance' or 'a sense of self-reliance'.

Common Mistakes

He has a strong self-reliance.
He has strong self-reliance.
Self-reliance is an uncountable noun and cannot be used with the article 'a'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All three words describe freedom from external control, but each has a different focus. Independence is the broadest term, covering political, financial, and personal freedom — a country can be independent, and so can a teenager. Self-sufficiency emphasises meeting one's own material needs; a self-sufficient household grows its own food and generates its own power. Autonomy is more formal and suggests the authority to govern oneself, often used for regions, institutions, or professionals making independent judgments. Self-reliance sits closest to personal independence but stresses active problem-solving and decision-making rather than just the absence of dependence. For example, an independent person might rely on others for advice while still being free, but a self-reliant person handles problems themselves.

independence ↗self-sufficiency ↗autonomy ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • reliance on oneself

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishLatinEnglish

The word combines 'self' (from Old English 'self', meaning one's own person) and 'reliance' (from 'rely', which comes from Latin 'religare', meaning to bind fast or tie closely). The term became widely known through American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous 1841 essay 'Self-Reliance', which argued that people should trust their own instincts and avoid conformity.