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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
  • Joe has always been ruthless, but never quite as tunnel-visioned in her motivations.
    — Andy Andersen, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Therefore, if Question 3 passes in this fall’s elections, Annapolis Democrats will forever be able to engage in ruthless gerrymandering to ensure that Maryland never elects another Republican or independent to Congress.
    — Chris West, Baltimore Sun, 19 Sep. 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
  • Screenshots of an account appearing to belong to Kirk Thomson, who is running for Area 2, were posted to Reddit and show the use of the insensitive remarks.
    — Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Retailers and top fashion brands have issued a string of apologies over the years for products criticized as being racially insensitive.
    — Dave Collins, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of insensitive
Adjective
  • Then with Lee, in the timeline closest to our present day, her heartbreaking, hard-to-stomach testimony means nothing to a callous judge who sentences her to death three times over.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Worth putting a pin in Catherine’s reaction to Lamb’s callous reference to Charles Partner, the late First Desk chief and turncoat who employed Catherine as his personal assistant.
    — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of callous
Adjective
  • Their furrows reminded me of Rembrandt’s paintings of old men, brows carved deep by hard use and long years.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Since then, his settings have become harder to locate in the contemporary world.
    — Matthew McLean, Artforum, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of hard

Browse Nearby Words

deselects
desensitized
desert
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Desensitized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desensitized. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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