On my own v alone

[FrenchMags1]

What are your thoughts on these two phrases:

I was alone.
I was on my own.

How can we define the nuances for a student?

Many thanks for your help.

 

[Raymott]

What are your thoughts on these two phrases:

I was alone.
I was on my own.

How can we define the nuances for a student?

Many thanks for your help.

What nuances do you want to describe? They seem to mean the same to me - you were there, but no one else was. Wouldn't the additional nuance have to come from the context?

 

[Tdol]

The context would indicate whether this was a neutral statement or carried an implication of negative feelings, etc. As they stand here, I don't see a difference.

 

[charliedeut]

To me, however, "alone" is rather neuter. "On my own" would imply I had to do something to survive, as if I were lost in the forest/jungle/desert/you name it.

Maybe it's just related to how I was taught, that's why I highlighted the beginning.

 

[konungursvia]

To me, alone is more likely to be merely factual. I was alone when I did my Christmas shopping.
And "on my own" is more likely to be social or affective. When the guilty verdict came down, it hit me I was on my own.