senseless

adjective

sense·​less ˈsen(t)s-ləs 

: destitute of, deficient in, or contrary to sense: such as

a

: unconscious

knocked senseless

b

: foolish, stupid

… it was some senseless practical joke …

—Arthur Conan Doyle

c

: meaningless

a senseless murder

senselessly adverb

senselessness noun

Synonyms of senseless

• unconscious

Examples of senseless in a Sentence

Don't be such a senseless idiot!

she collapsed, senseless, after hitting her head

Recent Examples on the Web

The ordeal was no longer a senseless drive to nowhere but a sensible one to nowhere. — Weike Wang, New Yorker, 17 May 2026

This country is grieving too many senseless and violent deaths and shootings. — Zack Sharf, Variety, 17 June 2026

The moves were senseless, short-sighted and emblematic of everything wrong with professional sports in this day and age. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 19 May 2026

The tragicomic, by contrast, elevates mixed affect as an ethical experience of a senseless world. — Eugenie Brinkema, ARTnews.com, 14 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1547, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for senseless

• defenseless

Kids Definition

senseless

adjective

sense·​less ˈsen(t)-sləs 

1

: unconscious entry 1 sense 2

knocked senseless

2

: foolish, stupid

3

: pointless sense 1, meaningless

a senseless act

senselessly adverb

senselessness noun