desensitized

adjective

as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings having lived through the horrors of war, the soldiers had seemingly become desensitized to virtually all human suffering

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of desensitized Although today’s audiences might be more desensitized to such gruesome scenes thanks to hyperrealistic special effects in modern horror movies, and the commonplace spread of graphic clips online, audiences of the ‘80s were reportedly traumatized and scandalized. — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2026 While the effects of violent media on viewers are notoriously hard to study, some evidence suggests that some audiences can become desensitized to the real-world consequences of unhealthy and violent content. — Cynthia Chris, The Conversation, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desensitized
  1. ruthless
  2. merciless
  3. stony
  4. insensitive
  5. callous
  6. hard
Adjective
  • She is described as brusque, cantankerous, ruthless — and also a killer.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Such ruthless prioritization produced some admirable results.
    — Julianne Smith, Foreign Affairs, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of ruthless
Adjective
  • Cora, the granddaughter of a woman kidnapped from West Africa and sold into slavery, flees her captor’s plantation, plunging her into the book’s alternate steampunk reality where she is pursued by the merciless slave catcher Ridgeway.
    — David Faris, TheWeek, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But the movie very much belongs to Trinca and Bruni Tedeschi, just as Anna belongs to the merciless stranger.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of merciless
Adjective
  • Oscar Wilde, for example, reposes beneath a hulking deity whose iconoclastic castration, back in 1961, did little to restrain pilgrims seeking to smear red lips across his stony physique.
    — Emily Cox, ARTnews.com, 22 May 2026
  • Instead of looking like a sleek urban loft, the room can quickly start to feel cold, stony, and impersonal.
    — Natasha Bazika, Martha Stewart, 9 May 2026
Definition of stony
Adjective
  • Three of the soccer players, including Yang Min-hyuk, who assisted the winning goal against Japan, made comments that were viewed as insensitive.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Multiple professional athletes spoke out in response, calling the video insensitive to those impacted by CTE.
    — Lucy Feldman, Time, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of insensitive
Adjective
  • What a simultaneously callous and graceful way to send off an audience that has spent the last hour falling in love.
    — Walden Green, Pitchfork, 9 Oct. 2026
  • His Lamb goes from a brash Yorkshire showman to a callous profiteer of human vice and misery, his cheeky smile becoming a vicious snarl.
    — Joe Reid, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of callous
Adjective
  • Two innings later, the Dodgers took the lead again, rewarded for hard contact as the Brewers’ defense showed its first signs of sloppy play.
    — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Games Can’t Gamble on Talent Opportunities to develop emerging talent are becoming harder to find, particularly in video games, van Beek said.
    — Callum McLennan, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of hard

Browse Nearby Words

deselects
desensitized
desert
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Cite this Entry

“Desensitized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desensitized. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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