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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stoic
not feeling or showing emotion
the accused remained affectless throughout the long trial
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in numbness
a lack of emotion or emotional expressiveness
though she always acts so blasé about everything, I think her air of affectlessness is largely put on
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of affectless
Steve Dollar, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2022
His paintings borrowed aspects of photographic vision (arbitrary cropping, dissonant overlap) and even photographic sensibility (cool, affectless, mechanical).
—Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2021
Mumblecore veteran Sheil, with her Raphaelite curtain of hair and almost affectless voice, can be an opaque heroine, and the plot, as far as there is one, feels halting at first, the dialogue choppy and unreal.
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 30 July 2020
Johnny Flynn’s affectless monotone was crisp, clear, and cheery.
—Adrienne So, Wired, 1 Apr. 2020
See All Example Sentences for affectless
Adjective
The use of an A.I. program to replicate Warhol’s flat, affectless speech to read the diary entries had a strangely fitting logic.
—Steve Dollar, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2022
His paintings borrowed aspects of photographic vision (arbitrary cropping, dissonant overlap) and even photographic sensibility (cool, affectless, mechanical).
—Washington Post, 20 Jan. 2021
Mumblecore veteran Sheil, with her Raphaelite curtain of hair and almost affectless voice, can be an opaque heroine, and the plot, as far as there is one, feels halting at first, the dialogue choppy and unreal.
—Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 30 July 2020
Johnny Flynn’s affectless monotone was crisp, clear, and cheery.
—Adrienne So, Wired, 1 Apr. 2020
See All Example Sentences for affectless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for affectless
Adjective
-
O’Neil had shown a more ruthless streak in dealing with Lemina, stripping the midfielder of the captaincy after those embarrassing post-match scenes at West Ham.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
21 Apr. 2025
-
There is the ruthless spymaster Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård) and his mysterious assistant Kleya (Elizabeth Dulau).—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
His dad was a stiff-upper-lip kind of guy, and Clint became known as the stoic kid with the sleepy brown eyes.—
Jenni Carlson,
USA Today,
19 Apr. 2025
-
Sidhwa, a stoic man with short hair, woke up when the pressure wave from an explosion blew the door open.—
Clayton Dalton,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Inspired by Lauren’s late mother, Adele, who was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s at the age of 55, their family knows that this merciless disease is no laughing matter.—
Jeff Conway,
Forbes.com,
17 Apr. 2025
-
Lottie proposes that Natalie be stripped of her title and that the merciless and vicious Shauna should lead them instead.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Havoc brings the heat, throwing Tom Hardy's stony Walker into a hotbed of gangsters, dirty cops, corrupt elites, and wicked assassins.—
Randall Colburn,
EW.com,
28 Apr. 2025
-
Yeo, with even less to work with, fares a little better with her stony matriarch character, doing a lot with a simple tilt of her face to the sky and a single tear.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
And to think, this pitiless conquistador came to North America as a humble kitchen herb, deliberately imported by European settlers for its piquant flavor.—
Zoë Lescaze,
New York Times,
13 Apr. 2025
-
This is Lynskey in The Last of Us mode, pitiless and unrelenting, and teeing her up against an aligned Misty and Tai is the most exciting development that could have come out of an originally aimless-feeling season.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
11 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Common symptoms of pneumonia include chest pain when breathing or coughing; fatigue; fever, sweating and shaking chills; nausea or vomiting; and a cough that produces phlegm, according to the Mayo Clinic.—
Adrianna Rodriguez,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2025
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Common symptoms of pneumonia include chest pain when breathing or coughing; fatigue; fever, sweating and shaking chills; nausea or vomiting; and a cough that produces phlegm, according to the Mayo Clinic.—
Adrianna Rodriguez,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
However, because ecocriticism emerged in American studies prior to the field’s transnational turn, during a time that emphasized the localized subject as resistance to an oppressive nation-state, ecocritical thought has struggled to adapt.—
Abby Clayton,
JSTOR Daily,
29 Apr. 2025
-
And this immensely oppressive power threatens the very foundation of legal representation in our country.—
Tom Dreisbach,
NPR,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Rather than aiding survival, prolonged apathy deepens suffering, worsening health outcomes and quality of life.—
Adam Kepecs,
The Conversation,
10 Apr. 2025
-
Their actions were abhorrent and horrifying—and their apathy was obvious.—
Ross Overline,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Affectless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/affectless. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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