apathetic

ap·a·thet·ic

adjective \ˌa-pə-ˈthe-tik\

Definition of APATHETIC

1

: having or showing little or no feeling or emotion : spiritless

2

: having little or no interest or concern : indifferent

— ap·a·thet·i·cal·ly \-ti-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

Examples of APATHETIC

1. Young people are becoming increasingly apathetic.
2. the apathetic attitude of the public
3. Surprisingly, most Americans are apathetic toward this important issue.
4. But contrary to popular belief, not all jocks are as apathetic as they are athletic. One such progressive player is Toni Smith, a college basketball player who turned her back on Old Glory every time the national anthem was played before her games last season. In a written statement, she cited America's systemic inequalities as her reason for not saluting the flag. —Complex, June/July 2003
5. The disorder is sometimes inherited via a defective gene from one parent, and patients are usually spared signs of the disorder until they reach their fifties. Because the brain-cell loss occurs in parts of the brain that help regulate social behavior, personality changes are the most common manifestations of the illness. Patients tend to become either uninhibited or apathetic. —Bruce L. Miller, Discover, January 1998
6. But in cities such as Boston, Cincinnati, Oakland, San Francisco, and Seattle, reformers are trying to recharge an apathetic electorate by taking aim at the very process of voting itself. —Wilma Rule et al., Ms., September/October 1996

Origin of APATHETIC

(see apathy)

First Known Use: 1744

Related to APATHETIC

Synonyms

indifferent, casual, complacent, disinterested, incurious, insensible, insouciant, nonchalant, perfunctory, pococurante, unconcerned, uncurious, uninterested

Antonyms

concerned, interested

Related Words

halfhearted, lukewarm, tepid; aloof, cold, numb, remote, unemotional; callous, hard-hearted, insensitive, unfeeling; calm, cool, detached, dispassionate; careless, heedless, mindless; impassive, impervious, phlegmatic, stoic (or stoical), stolid; lethargic, listless; unimpressed

Near Antonyms

attentive, aware, conscientious, heedful, mindful; caring, sensitive, warmhearted; ardent, fervent, keen, passionate, warm, zealous

See Synonym Discussion at impassive

Other Psychology Terms

fetish, hypochondria, intelligence, mania, narcissism, neurosis, pathological, psychosis, schadenfreude, subliminal

Rhymes with APATHETIC

alphabetic, anesthetic, arithmetic, asyndetic, copacetic, diabetic, diarrhetic, diathetic, dietetic, digenetic, diphyletic, diuretic, empathetic, energetic, epithetic, geodetic, homiletic, Masoretic, nomothetic, sympathetic, synergetic, synesthetic

ap·a·thet·ic

adjective \ˌap-ə-ˈthet-ik\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of APATHETIC

: having or showing little or no feeling or emotion

—ap·a·thet·i·cal·ly \-i-k(ə-)lē\ adverb