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cal·lous | \ ˈka-ləs 
\
\Definition of callous
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : being hardened and thickened
b : having calluses callous hands
2a : feeling no emotion
b : feeling or showing no sympathy for others : hard-hearted a callous indifference to suffering
callous
verbcal·lous | \ ˈka-ləs \
\calloused; callousing; callouses
Definition of callous (Entry 2 of 2)
: to make callous
hands calloused by hard manual labor
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Synonyms & Antonyms for callous
Synonyms: Adjective
- affectless,
- case-hardened,
- cold-blooded,
- compassionless,
- desensitized,
- hard,
- hard-boiled,
- hard-hearted,
- heartless,
- indurate,
- inhuman,
- inhumane,
- insensate,
- insensitive,
- ironhearted,
- merciless,
- obdurate,
- pachydermatous,
- pitiless,
- remorseless,
- ruthless,
- slash-and-burn,
- soulless,
- stony
- (also stoney),
- stonyhearted,
- take-no-prisoners,
- thick-skinned,
- uncharitable,
- unfeeling,
- unmerciful,
- unsparing,
- unsympathetic
Antonyms: Adjective
- charitable,
- compassionate,
- humane,
- kindhearted,
- kindly,
- merciful,
- sensitive,
- softhearted,
- sympathetic,
- tender,
- tenderhearted,
- warm,
- warmhearted
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 Morning, 1954
a selfish and callous young man
a callous refusal to help the poor
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Pick off a leaf and let the end where it was attached develop a callous by leaving it exposed to air.
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Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, "Introducing kalanchoe, the perfect houseplant for November in the north," 21 Nov. 2019 Instead of calling for help, Gaffney allegedly uploaded the picture of Garcia — with his callous message — onto Snapchat.
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Kc Baker, PEOPLE.com, "N.J. Man Allegedly Posted Naked Snapchat Pic of Teen He Choked to Death During Sex in Parked Car," 18 Nov. 2019 The attack was a kind of callous brutality not commonly seen in street gang warfare largely because when children and other unaffiliated family members are intentionally targeted, the unspoken rules of combat become upended, criminal experts say.
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NBC News, "Crossing a line in gang wars: Chicago gang members on trial for execution-style murder of 9-year-old," 29 Sep. 2019 The next day, Jennifer seems like her usual selfish, callous self.
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Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Horror film Jennifer’s Body bombed 10 years ago; now it’s a cult classic," 21 Sep. 2019 No one deserves to be treated in this callous manner.
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Dp Opinion, The Denver Post, "Letters: Pregnant inmate deserved help; Voters will get final say; Seeing red at Colorado game (9/9/19)," 9 Sep. 2019 Prosecutors asked for an eight-month sentence, saying the attorney lacked morality, showed callous disregard for the law.
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CBS News, "Felicity Huffman's sentence "set the floor" in college admissions scandal, lawyer says," 4 Oct. 2019 The only real conspiracy here is the ageless one between and among prison guards and jail officials who too often treat at-risk inmates with callous disregard and deliberate indifference.
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Andrew Cohen, The New Republic, "The Completely Predictable Death of Jeffrey Epstein," 11 Aug. 2019 But the callous, illogical inhumanity of the current policy is best summed up by Steven Camarota, director of research for the conservative Center for Immigration Studies.
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Peter Keough, BostonGlobe.com, "Doc Talk: Outcasts, deportees, crustaceans, grants," 1 Aug. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused.
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Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'callous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for callous
callous
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of callous
disapproving : not feeling or showing any concern about the problems or suffering of other people
See the full definition for callous in the English Language Learners Dictionary
callous
adjectivecal·lous | \ ˈka-ləs \
\Kids Definition of callous
: feeling or showing no sympathy for others
a callous refusal to help
callous
adjectivecal·lous | \ ˈkal-əs \
\Medical Definition of callous
1 : being hardened and thickened
2 : having calluses
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Time Traveler for callous
The first known use of callous was in the 14th century
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