Synonyms of affectless

affectless

adjective

ˈa-ˌfekt-ləs 

1

as in ruthless

having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings

an affectless analysis of the cost of the war purely in pecuniary terms

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ruthless
• merciless
• stony
• pitiless
• soulless
• oppressive
• hard
• inhuman
• abusive
• compassionless
• callous
• heartless
• grim
• unfeeling
• unsympathetic
• obdurate
• brutal
• harsh
• remorseless
• inhumane
• stern
• malicious
• unsparing
• insensitive
• insensate
• cruel
• take-no-prisoners
• hateful
• tough
• uncharitable
• unmerciful
• cold-blooded
• vicious
• indurate
• pachydermatous
• hard-boiled
• hard-hearted
• slash-and-burn
• desensitized
• thick-skinned
• case-hardened
• savage
• boorish
• severe
• uncaring
• ironhearted
• thoughtless
• unfriendly
• rough
• unthinking
• stonyhearted
• heedless
• ungentle
• disagreeable
• malevolent
• inconsiderate
• mean
• unloving
• virulent
• cold
• spiteful
• surly
• rough-and-tumble
• bestial
• ironhanded
• hard-bitten
• heavy-handed
• acrimonious
• brutish
• barbarous
• ironfisted
• austere
• jackbooted
• ill-natured
• sledgehammer
• frosty
• rancorous
• ill-tempered
• evil-minded
• knock-down, drag-out

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• sympathetic
• warm
• sensitive
• humane
• charitable
• compassionate
• gentle
• merciful
• kindly
• kind
• benevolent
• mild
• tender
• indulgent
• friendly
• warmhearted
• lenient
• gracious
• kindhearted
• softhearted
• cordial
• benignant
• tenderhearted
• affectionate
• tolerant
• good-natured
• loving
• clement
• understanding
• good-tempered
• fond

2

as in stoic

not feeling or showing emotion

the accused remained affectless throughout the long trial

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stoic
• impassive
• emotionless
• unemotional
• bland
• calm
• passionless
• phlegmatic
• undemonstrative
• stolid
• numb
• apathetic
• detached
• enigmatic
• impassible
• empty
• dry
• cold-blooded
• dispassionate
• collected
• cold
• composed
• unmoved
• imperturbable
• blank
• reserved
• inexpressive
• expressionless
• deadpan
• unflappable
• wooden
• cool
• taciturn
• vacant
• aloof
• impersonal
• inscrutable
• pitiless
• unsentimental
• indifferent
• objective
• unresponsive
• unconcerned
• reticent
• bloodless
• impenetrable
• stone-faced
• thoughtless
• unfeeling
• straight-faced
• inconsiderate
• insensible
• hard-hearted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• emotional
• impassioned
• passionate
• fervent
• demonstrative
• fervid
• vehement
• passional
• enthusiastic
• fiery
• zealous
• burning
• ardent
• sentimental
• red-hot
• mawkish
• dramatic
• melodramatic
• flaming
• sympathetic
• glowing
• histrionic
• mushy
• blazing
• hot-blooded
• responsive
• compassionate
• warm-blooded
• sensitive
• reactive
• maudlin
• gung ho
• perfervid
• overemotional
• overheated
• gushing

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of affectless

Avoiding romance and melodrama, deBoer writes in an affectless register that mirrors Alice’s dissociation. — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025

The clip is entirely affectless—an authentic moment of pure lyricism. — John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2022

Skarsgård does well with the character’s daytime ambiguity (tight-faced, affectless) and nighttime plotting (observant, physically lithe). — Vulture, 27 Apr. 2022

And the key to the mystery — not the solution to it but the dark center of it — is Swinton Byrne’s quiet, reserved, at times almost affectless performance. — New York Times, 7 Dec. 2021