aloof (adverb) - physically or emotionally removed or distant; detached, disinterested, or standoffish [uh-loof]
often used in the phrase stand aloof
aloofness is a show of indifference or detachment
BREAKDOWN: The word aloof has an unexpected nautical origin, based on the Dutch loef meaning windward or toward the wind. The nautical order to keep a ship's head toward the wind and clear of a lee-shore or some other threat eventually assumed a more figurative sense of remaining at a distance or apart.
“A poet can't afford to be aloof. The tools of his trade are the people he bumps up against.” —Rod McKuen
[Our Wednesday Wildcards are fascinating and important words that are not necessarily derived from classical roots.]