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

There, investigators found a man unresponsive in a grassy area suffering from gunshot wounds, Gonzalez said. —Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 11 Mar. 2026

Police are investigating a fatal shooting in Hartford on Monday night after a man was found unresponsive in the street following a shots fired report. —Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 10 Mar. 2026

In late November, Tavai’s then pregnant girlfriend suffered a medical emergency caused by a rare blood infection that left her unresponsive in her bed. —Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 9 Mar. 2026

Videos of the aftermath show survivors and police officers doing chest compressions on unresponsive patients. —Emiliano Tahui Gómez, Austin American Statesman, 8 Mar. 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