Single vs. Sole — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Urooj Arif — Updated on April 6, 2024
Single emphasizes individuality or one in number, while sole focuses on being the only one or exclusive.
Difference Between Single and Sole
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Single is often used to denote an individual unit or person, highlighting the concept of one among others, or a state of not being in a relationship. Sole, on the other hand, emphasizes exclusivity or being the only one of its kind. It conveys a sense of uniqueness and singularity, often in contexts where something or someone has no equivalent or competition, such as a sole provider or the sole survivor of an accident.
While both terms can sometimes be used interchangeably, their nuances set them apart. Single can denote one among many, suggesting the presence of others, whereas sole implies a unique status without equals. For example, a single option among many on a menu versus the sole heir to an estate, where the latter indicates exclusivity and no presence of alternatives.
The difference also lies in their applications. Single is widely used across various contexts, from personal status to item quantity, emphasizing individuality or oneness. Sole, however, is more specific to contexts requiring exclusivity, authority, or undivided attention, suggesting that no other entity shares the same role or characteristic.
Comparison Chart
Meaning
One in number; not in a relationship
Only one; exclusive
Contexts
General use, including personal status
Specific contexts requiring exclusivity
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Implication
One among others; individuality
Uniqueness without equals
Examples
Single slice of pizza; single person
Sole survivor; sole proprietor
Nuance
Emphasizes number or marital status
Emphasizes being the only one of its kind
Compare with Definitions
Single
A one-time event or action.
He made a single attempt and succeeded.
Sole
Unique in possession or position.
The document granted him sole custody of his child.
Single
One in number, not multiple.
She bought a single ticket to the show.
Sole
Only one; exclusive.
She is the sole owner of the company.
Single
Not involved in a romantic relationship.
He's been single since last year.
Sole
The bottom part of a shoe.
The sole of my shoe has worn out.
Single
Individual or separate.
Each single piece was carefully examined.
Sole
Having no others.
The sole survivor told his story.
Single
Unique in one aspect.
She had a single focus during the competition.
Sole
Focused or dedicated.
His sole purpose was to finish the project on time.
Single
Only one; not one of several
The kingdom was ruled over by a single family
A single red rose
Sole
A shipping forecast area in the north-eastern Atlantic, covering the western approaches to the English Channel.
Single
Consisting of one part
The studio was a single large room
Sole
Put a new sole on to (a shoe)
He wanted several pairs of boots to be soled and heeled
Single
Free from duplicity or deceit; ingenuous
A pure and single heart
Sole
One and only
My sole aim was to contribute to the national team
Single
An individual person or thing rather than part of a pair or a group.
Sole
(especially of a woman) unmarried.
Single
A hit for one run.
Sole
The underside of the foot.
Single
(especially in tennis and badminton) a game or competition for individual players, not pairs or teams.
Sole
The underside of a shoe or boot, often excluding the heel.
Single
A system of change-ringing in which one pair of bells changes places at each round.
Sole
The bottom surface of a plow.
Single
Choose someone or something from a group for special treatment
One newspaper was singled out for criticism
Sole
The bottom surface of the head of a golf club.
Single
Thin out (seedlings or saplings)
Hand hoes are used for singling roots
Sole
Any of various chiefly marine flatfishes of the family Soleidae, having both eyes on the right side of the body, and including food fishes such as the Dover sole of the Atlantic Ocean.
Single
Reduce (a railway track) to a single line
The South Western line was singled west of Salisbury
Sole
Any of various other flatfishes, especially certain flounders.
Single
Hit a single
Cohen singled to centre
Sole
To furnish (a shoe or boot) with a sole.
Single
Not accompanied by another or others; solitary.
Sole
To put the sole of (a golf club) on the ground, as in preparing to make a stroke.
Single
Consisting of one part, aspect, or section
A single thickness.
A single serving.
Sole
Being the only one
The sole survivor of the crash.
Single
Having the same application for all; uniform
A single moral code for all.
Sole
Of or relating to only one individual or group; exclusive
She took sole command of the ship.
Single
Consisting of one in number
She had but a single thought, which was to escape.
Sole
Only.
Single
Not divided; unbroken
A single slab of ice.
Sole
(legal) Unmarried (especially of a woman); widowed.
Single
Separate from others; individual and distinct
Every single child will receive a gift.
Sole
Unique; unsurpassed.
The sole brilliance of this gem.
Single
Having individual opponents; involving two individuals only
Single combat.
Sole
With independent power; unfettered.
A sole authority.
Single
Honest; undisguised
A single adoration.
Sole
(anatomy) The bottom or plantar surface of the foot.
Single
Wholly attentive
You must judge the contest with a single eye.
Sole
(footwear) The bottom of a shoe or boot.
Single
Designed to accommodate one person or thing
A single bed.
Sole
(obsolete) The foot itself.
Single
Not married or involved in a romantic relationship
Once he knew she was single, he asked her to go out.
Sole
(fish) Solea solea, a flatfish of the family Soleidae.
Single
Relating to a state of being unmarried or uninvolved in a romantic relationship
Enjoys the single life.
Sole
The bottom or lower part of anything, or that on which anything rests in standing.
Single
(Botany) Having only one rank or row of petals
A single flower.
Sole
The bottom of the body of a plough; the slade.
Single
One that is separate and individual.
Sole
The bottom of a furrow.
Single
Something capable of carrying, moving, or holding one person or thing at a time, as a bed or a hotel room.
Sole
The end section of the chanter of a set of bagpipes.
Single
A person who is not married or involved in a romantic relationship.
Sole
The horny substance under a horse's foot, which protects the more tender parts.
Single
Singles Such persons considered as a group
A bar for singles.
Sole
(military) The bottom of an embrasure.
Single
A one-dollar bill.
Sole
(nautical) A piece of timber attached to the lower part of the rudder, to make it even with the false keel.
Single
A phonograph record, especially a forty-five, having one song on each side.
Sole
(nautical) The floor inside the cabin of a yacht or boat
Single
A song on one of these sides.
Sole
(mining) The seat or bottom of a mine; applied to horizontal veins or lodes.
Single
A song, often from a full-length album or compact disc, that is released for airplay.
Sole
A wooden band or yoke put around the neck of an ox or cow in the stall.
Single
(Baseball) A hit enabling the batter to reach first base. Also called one-bagger, one-base hit.
Sole
A pond or pool; a dirty pond of standing water.
Single
A hit for one run in cricket.
Sole
(transitive) to put a sole on (a shoe or boot)
Single
A golf match between two players.
Sole
To pull by the ears; to pull about; haul; lug.
Single
Often singles A tennis or badminton match between two players.
Sole
Any one of several species of flatfishes of the genus Solea and allied genera of the family Soleidæ, especially the common European species (Solea vulgaris), which is a valuable food fish.
Single
Singles A competition in which individuals compete against each other, as in rowing or figure skating.
Sole
The bottom of the foot; hence, also, rarely, the foot itself.
The dove found no rest for the sole of her foot.
Hast wandered through the world now long a day,Yet ceasest not thy weary soles to lead.
Single
To cause (a base runner) to score or advance by hitting a single
Singled him to second.
Sole
The bottom of a shoe or boot, or the piece of leather which constitutes the bottom.
The "caliga" was a military shoe, with a very thick sole, tied above the instep.
Single
To cause the scoring of (a run) by hitting a single.
Sole
The bottom or lower part of anything, or that on which anything rests in standing.
Single
To hit a single.
Sole
To furnish with a sole; as, to sole a shoe.
Single
Not accompanied by anything else; one in number.
Can you give me a single reason not to leave right now?
The vase contained a single long-stemmed rose.
Sole
Being or acting without another; single; individual; only.
He, be sure . . . first and last will reignSole king.
Single
Not divided in parts.
The potatoes left the spoon and landed in a single big lump on the plate.
Sole
Single; unmarried; as, a feme sole.
Single
Designed for the use of only one.
A single room
Sole
The underside of footwear or a golfclub
Single
Performed by one person, or one on each side.
A single combat
Sole
Lean flesh of any of several flatfish
Single
Not married, and (in modern times) not dating or without a significant other.
Forms often ask if a person is single, married, divorced, or widowed. In this context, a person who is dating someone but who has never married puts "single".
Josh put down that he was a single male on the dating website.
Sole
The underside of the foot
Single
(botany) Having only one rank or row of petals.
Sole
Right-eyed flatfish; many are valued as food; most common in warm seas especially European
Single
(obsolete) Simple and honest; sincere, without deceit.
Sole
Put a new sole on;
Sole the shoes
Single
Uncompounded; pure; unmixed.
Sole
Not divided or shared with others;
They have exclusive use of the machine
Sole rights of publication
Single
(obsolete) Simple; foolish; weak; silly.
Sole
Being the only one; single and isolated from others;
The lone doctor in the entire county
A lonesome pine
An only child
The sole heir
The sole example
A solitary instance of cowardice
A solitary speck in the sky
Single
(music) A 45 RPM vinyl record with one song on side A and one on side B.
Single
(music) A popular song released and sold (on any format) nominally on its own though usually having at least one extra track.
The Offspring released four singles from their most recent album.
Single
One who is not married or does not have a romantic partner.
He went to the party, hoping to meet some friendly singles there.
Single
(cricket) A score of one run.
Single
(baseball) A hit in baseball where the batter advances to first base.
Single
(dominoes) A tile that has a different value (i.e. number of pips) at each end.
Single
A bill valued at $1.
I don't have any singles, so you'll have to make change.
Single
(UK) A one-way ticket.
Single
(Canadian football) A score of one point, awarded when a kicked ball is dead within the non-kicking team's end zone or has exited that end zone.
Single
A game with one player on each side, as in tennis.
Single
One of the reeled filaments of silk, twisted without doubling to give them firmness.
Single
A handful of gleaned grain.
Single
A floating-point number having half the precision of a double-precision value.
Single
(film) A shot of only one character.
Single
A single cigarette.
Single
Synonym of single-driver.
Single
To identify or select one member of a group from the others; generally used with out, either to single out or to single (something) out.
Eddie singled out his favorite marble from the bag.
Yvonne always wondered why Ernest had singled her out of the group of giggling girls she hung around with.
Single
(baseball) To get a hit that advances the batter exactly one base.
Pedro singled in the bottom of the eighth inning, which, if converted to a run, would put the team back into contention.
Single
(agriculture) To thin out.
Single
(of a horse) To take the irregular gait called singlefoot.
Single
To sequester; to withdraw; to retire.
Single
To take alone, or one by one; to single out.
Single
(transitive) To reduce (a railway) to single track.
Single
One only, as distinguished from more than one; consisting of one alone; individual; separate; as, a single star.
No single man is born with a right of controlling the opinions of all the rest.
Single
Alone; having no companion.
Who single hast maintained,Against revolted multitudes, the causeOf truth.
Single
Hence, unmarried; as, a single man or woman.
Grows, lives, and dies in single blessedness.
Single chose to live, and shunned to wed.
Single
Not doubled, twisted together, or combined with others; as, a single thread; a single strand of a rope.
Single
Performed by one person, or one on each side; as, a single combat.
These shifts refuted, answer thy appellant, . . . Who now defles thee thrice ti single fight.
Single
Uncompounded; pure; unmixed.
Simple ideas are opposed to complex, and single to compound.
Single
Not deceitful or artful; honest; sincere.
I speak it with a single heart.
Single
Simple; not wise; weak; silly.
He utters such single matter in so infantly a voice.
Single
To select, as an individual person or thing, from among a number; to choose out from others; to separate.
Dogs who hereby can single out their master in the dark.
His blood! she faintly screamed her mindStill singling one from all mankind.
Single
To sequester; to withdraw; to retire.
An agent singling itself from consorts.
Single
To take alone, or one by one.
Men . . . commendable when they are singled.
Single
To take the irrregular gait called single-foot; - said of a horse. See Single-foot.
Many very fleet horses, when overdriven, adopt a disagreeable gait, which seems to be a cross between a pace and a trot, in which the two legs of one side are raised almost but not quite, simultaneously. Such horses are said to single, or to be single-footed.
Single
A unit; one; as, to score a single.
Single
The reeled filaments of silk, twisted without doubling to give them firmness.
Single
A handful of gleaned grain.
Single
A game with but one player on each side; - usually in the plural.
Single
A hit by a batter which enables him to reach first base only.
Single
A base hit on which the batter stops safely at first base
Single
The smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number;
He has the one but will need a two and three to go with it
They had lunch at one
Single
Hit a one-base hit
Single
Existing alone or consisting of one entity or part or aspect or individual;
Upon the hill stood a single tower
Had but a single thought which was to escape
A single survivor
A single serving
A single lens
A single thickness
Single
Used of flowers having usually only one row or whorl of petals;
Single chrysanthemums resemble daisies and may have more than one row of petals
Single
Characteristic of or meant for a single person or thing;
An individual serving
Separate rooms
Single occupancy
A single bed
Single
Having uniform application;
A single legal code for all
Single
Not divided among or brought to bear on more than one object or objective;
Judging a contest with a single eye
A single devotion to duty
Undivided affection
Gained their exclusive attention
Single
Involved two individuals;
Single combat
Single
Individual and distinct;
Pegged down each separate branch to the earth
A gift for every single child
Common Curiosities
Is "sole" used in business contexts?
Yes, it's often used to describe exclusive rights, ownerships, or positions, like a sole proprietorship.
Can a person be both single and sole in a context?
Yes, for example, someone can be the single (unmarried) and sole (only) beneficiary of an estate.
What does sole custody mean?
It refers to legal custody where only one parent has the right to make major decisions for the child.
How does sole affect legal agreements?
It signifies undivided responsibility or benefit, often impacting the interpretation of rights and obligations.
What does "sole" imply in culinary terms?
It can refer to exclusivity, like the sole ingredient responsible for a dish's flavor, or the sole fish, a type of flatfish.
What is the significance of being the sole representative?
It means being the only person to represent a group, organization, or country, carrying exclusive authority or responsibility.
Can a business be a sole entity?
Yes, in contexts like a sole proprietorship, where one individual owns and operates the business.
What does single indicate in a legal document?
In legal documents, single typically refers to marital status, indicating a person is not married.
Can single and sole be used interchangeably?
While sometimes interchangeable, their nuances often dictate choice; single emphasizes one among others, sole highlights exclusivity.
How does sole differ when talking about ownership?
Sole denotes exclusive ownership, implying no shared rights or responsibilities.
What is a single-use product?
A product designed to be used once and then disposed of.
Can a single choice imply multiple options were available?
Yes, it implies one was selected among several.
Is there a difference in responsibility between single and sole?
Yes, sole often carries a weight of exclusivity in responsibility or benefit, unlike single, which primarily denotes quantity or status.
How is "single" used in sports?
It can refer to individual games or matches, as opposed to doubles or team events.
Does "single" have a negative connotation?
It can, depending on context, but generally, it is a neutral term describing marital status or quantity.
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Written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
