impersonal

adjective

im·​per·​son·​al (ˌ)im-ˈpər-sə-nəl 

-ˈpərs-nəl

1

a

: having no personal reference or connection

impersonal criticism

b

: not engaging the human personality or emotions

the machine as compared with the hand tool is an impersonal agency

—John Dewey

c

: not existing as a person : not having human qualities or characteristics

2

a

: denoting the verbal action of an unspecified agent and hence used with no expressed subject (such as methinks) or with a merely formal subject (such as rained in it rained)

b

of a pronoun : indefinite

impersonality

(ˌ)im-ˌpər-sə-ˈna-lə-tē 

noun

impersonally

(ˌ)im-ˈpər-sə-nə-lē 

-ˈpərs-nə-lē

adverb

Examples of impersonal in a Sentence

We discussed the weather and other impersonal topics.

He maintained an impersonal, professional attitude.

“Rained” in “it rained” is an impersonal verb.

Recent Examples on the Web

Average, Impersonal Content Too many organizations follow the crowd by using undifferentiated, impersonal content for lead generation and hoping that sending it to huge numbers of people will generate results. —Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025

Snap president Ronan Harris transformed his leadership approach after his father challenged him to replace impersonal thank-you emails with handwritten notes and face-to-face recognition. —Massimo Marioni, Fortune, 25 June 2025

For many travelers, flying has become little more than a way to reach a destination—efficient, often impersonal, and rarely memorable. —Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 20 June 2025

Jaws was criticized for shepherding Hollywood out of the daring age of the late sixties and early seventies into a more impersonal multiplex age, but that’s not the film’s fault: That’s just a measure of how amazing an achievement Jaws actually was. —Tim Grierson, Vulture, 20 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Late Latin impersonalis, from Latin in- + Late Latin personalis personal

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Rhymes for impersonal

• nonpersonal
• transpersonal
• interpersonal
• intrapersonal
• personal

Kids Definition

impersonal

adjective

im·​per·​son·​al (ˈ)im-ˈpərs-nəl 

-ᵊn-əl

1

: having no expressed subject or no subject other than "it"

"rained" in "it rained" is an impersonal verb

2

: not personal:

a

: not showing or involving personal feelings : detached

an impersonal professional attitude

b

: not caring about individual persons or their feelings

cold impersonal cities

a giant impersonal corporation

impersonality

(ˌ)im-ˌpərs-ᵊn-ˈal-ət-ē 

noun

impersonally

(ˈ)im-ˈpərs-nə-lē 

-ᵊn-ə-lē

adverb