as in heartlessness
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Recent Examples of callousness
Antisocial personality includes a persistent pattern of traits such as callousness, lack of concern, deceitfulness, and irresponsibility, Ryan said.
—
Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
Our society seems to be spiraling into a vortex of callousness, ignorance, cynicism, violence, intolerance, and hate.
—Rabbi Dan Levin, Sun Sentinel, 14 Apr. 2026
There’s another nice juxtaposition in this episode, this time highlighting Robby’s callousness.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2026
The killing in the woods of Knoxville demonstrated a brutality and callousness rarely seen in a woman, let alone one so young.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 21 Mar. 2026
Kroshunov's daughter, Ilana Korshunov, expressed shock at the callousness of the driver.
—Anders Hagstrom, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
That means uprooting institutionalized callousness and redefining what counts as efficiency, innovation and value.
—Valerie L. Myers, The Conversation, 8 Jan. 2026
The ego, the hardness, the … callousness of anything that might be on the heart or the mind had literally just melted away.
—Kelsie Hoffman, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
And yet, there is this streak — more than a streak — of brutality and of callousness and of cruelty.
—Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Dec. 2025
Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
Our society seems to be spiraling into a vortex of callousness, ignorance, cynicism, violence, intolerance, and hate.
—Rabbi Dan Levin, Sun Sentinel, 14 Apr. 2026
There’s another nice juxtaposition in this episode, this time highlighting Robby’s callousness.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2026
The killing in the woods of Knoxville demonstrated a brutality and callousness rarely seen in a woman, let alone one so young.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 21 Mar. 2026
Kroshunov's daughter, Ilana Korshunov, expressed shock at the callousness of the driver.
—Anders Hagstrom, FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026
That means uprooting institutionalized callousness and redefining what counts as efficiency, innovation and value.
—Valerie L. Myers, The Conversation, 8 Jan. 2026
The ego, the hardness, the … callousness of anything that might be on the heart or the mind had literally just melted away.
—Kelsie Hoffman, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
And yet, there is this streak — more than a streak — of brutality and of callousness and of cruelty.
—Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for callousness
Noun
-
These young graduates start out naive about the heartlessness of the corporate world and harbor illusory hopes for success in unforgiving professions.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
16 Mar. 2026
-
The lives of the two children in the story, aged fourteen and four, are portrayed as being as fleeting as the fireflies, and the story is an unsentimental and unflinching account with moments of both tenderness and heartlessness.—
Ginny Tapley Takemori
September 4,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
When Charles was set to come face to face with one of the brightest, youngest faces of American politics, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, he was met with only a coldness and reminder of the crimes of British imperialism.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
-
The term implies godlike deftness and speed but also a certain impersonal coldness — skill at the expense of passion.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Directness is often confused with insensitivity.—
Jonathan Alpert OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2026
-
The majority reported being treated rudely by providers, insensitivity regarding modesty requirements, or having their pain disregarded.—
Anisah Bagasra,
The Conversation,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
China has gained, not suffered, from this obduracy.—
JONATHAN A. CZIN,
Foreign Affairs,
25 Nov. 2025
-
Related: ‘Neglected diseases’ are anything but neglected by the billion-plus people living with them One possible reason for this obduracy is that noma begins as a dental disease, and dental diseases have long been underappreciated global health concerns.—
John Button,
STAT,
16 Dec. 2023
Noun
-
Going into the study, the team hypothesized that pincers built for generating high crushing force would contain the highest levels of metal to provide maximum hardness, while enrichment in the weaker, slender pincers would be lower.—
Jacek Krywko,
ArsTechnica,
1 May 2026
-
Its replaceable filters will help reduce water hardness.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The 17-year-old mother, named for a callosity near her blowhole that looks like a snow cone, no longer had the same girth or the dark black skin of a healthy right whale.—
David Abel,
BostonGlobe.com,
30 Sep. 2022
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The callosity patterns, like fingerprints, are unique to each whale, allowing researchers who have pored over whale catalogue photos to recognize plenty in the wild.—
Dino Grandoni,
Anchorage Daily News,
22 Apr. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Callousness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/callousness. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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