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

While searching the area, officers found the child lying unresponsive in the roadway on Winder Highway near Stanley Court. —Staff Author, PEOPLE, 9 May 2026

Young women have reported aggressive behavior from homeless people who continuously approach them and make lewd comments, and have chided campus police for being unresponsive to their concerns. —Peter D'abrosca , Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 7 May 2026

Officers entered the residence and located four unresponsive individuals with gunshot wounds. —Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 6 May 2026

First responders also found an unresponsive person in the home, according to state police. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 6 May 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