callous

1 of 2

adjective

cal·​lous ˈka-ləs How to pronounce callous (audio)
1
a
: being hardened and thickened
b
: having calluses
callous hands
2
a
: feeling no emotion
b
: feeling or showing no sympathy for others : hard-hearted
a callous indifference to suffering
callously adverb
callousness noun

callous

2 of 2

verb

cal·​lous ˈka-ləs How to pronounce callous (audio)
calloused; callousing; callouses

transitive verb

: to make callous
hands calloused by hard manual labor

Did you know?

A callus is a hard, thickened area of skin that develops usually from friction or irritation over time. Such a hardened area often leaves one less sensitive to the touch, so it's no surprise that the adjective callous, in addition to describing skin that is hard and thick, can also be used as a synonym for harsh or insensitive. Both callus and callous derive via Middle English from Latin. The figurative sense of callous entered English almost 300 years after the literal sense, and Robert Louis Stevenson used it aptly when he wrote, in Treasure Island, "But, indeed, from what I saw, all these buccaneers were as callous as the sea they sailed on."

Examples of callous in a Sentence

Adjective … under Orton's own companionable charm there was something hard and callous, the result no doubt of a loveless upbringing … Benedict Nightingale, New York Times Book Review, 10 May 1987
… the scenes involving the snotty, callous dean ring false right from the start … Pauline Kael, New Yorker, 8 Apr. 1985
Patient, cold and callous, our hands wrapped in socks, we waited to snowball the cats. Dylan Thomas, "A Child's Christmas in Wales," in Quite Early One Morning1954
a selfish and callous young man a callous refusal to help the poor
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Rosalind had struggled with infertility, and had bad experiences with callous doctors. Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 13 Nov. 2023 But Chabon’s literary gifts, in at least one sense, inadvertently transcend his callous attitude. Jack Butler, National Review, 4 Nov. 2023 Seattle’s Community Police Commission has recommended that the city’s police chief place on unpaid leave the officer under investigation for making callous remarks about the death of a 23-year-old woman after she was struck by another officer’s cruiser in a crosswalk. Janelle Griffith, NBC News, 21 Sep. 2023 This is a movie that will be endlessly memed, particularly Rosamund Pike’s every line as Felix’s blithely callous aristocratic mother. Jada Yuan, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2023 In the fifties, the Fujiwara Opera, based in Tokyo, collaborated with New York City Opera on a bilingual production: Japanese singers took the Japanese roles, and white singers portrayed the callous Lieutenant Pinkerton and the more sympathetic consul Sharpless. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023 The tone-deaf response by college students and left-wing activists has been matched by statements from the halls of power that are equally callous toward Palestinian lives. TIME, 14 Oct. 2023 Lewis cannot seem to conceive that perhaps this kid was just a cruel and callous piece of work. Jacob Bacharach, The New Republic, 12 Oct. 2023 Andy was a one-of-a-kind man, and for two individuals to take his life in such a cold and callous way is sick. Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 27 Sep. 2023
Verb
Manual laborers, for example, often have calloused hands that fingerprint scanners are unable to read reliably. Nandan Nilekani, Foreign Affairs, 14 Aug. 2018 His hands are raw, his feet are calloused, but Monday was a new day, a new challenge, inspiring new hope. Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY, 27 Apr. 2020 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, 14 June 2019 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'callous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Verb

Middle English, from Latin callosus, from callum, callus callous skin

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1769, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of callous was in the 14th century

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Dictionary Entries Near callous

Cite this Entry

“Callous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/callous. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

callous

adjective
cal·​lous
ˈkal-əs
1
a
: being hardened and thickened
b
: having calluses
callous hands
2
: feeling or showing no sympathy for others : unfeeling
a callous refusal to help the poor
callously adverb
callousness noun

Medical Definition

callous

adjective
cal·​lous ˈkal-əs How to pronounce callous (audio)
1
: being hardened and thickened
2
: having calluses

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