unresponsive

adjective

un·​re·​spon·​sive ˌən-ri-ˈspän(t)-siv 

: not responsive

The patient was unresponsive.

an infection unresponsive to antibiotics

an unresponsive bureaucracy

Although they are able to locate their own food at two weeks of age, fledgling robins will still piteously beg handouts from their increasingly unresponsive father.

—Millard H. Sharp

unresponsively adverb

staring unresponsively

unresponsiveness noun

Examples of unresponsive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Epstein's cell was strewn with extra linens and clothing, some tied into nooses, when he was found unresponsive. —Erik Ortiz, NBC news, 25 Mar. 2026

Call 911 for difficulty breathing or unresponsive. —Nicole Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 24 Mar. 2026

Officials are investigating the death of an inmate who was found unresponsive at a correctional facility in Somers on Sunday. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 23 Mar. 2026

Police said afterwards, a woman, identified by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office as 84-year-old Judith Harris, was found unresponsive inside. —Jeramie Bizzle, CBS News, 22 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unresponsive

• nonresponsive
• responsive

Medical Definition

unresponsive

adjective

un·​re·​spon·​sive ˌən-ri-ˈspän(t)-siv 

: not responsive (as to a stimulus or treatment)

an unresponsive ulcer

unresponsiveness noun