1
as in unconscious
lacking animate awareness or sensation
the belief that God is immanent in all things, even insensate objects
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2
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
an insensate boss who refuses to allow time off for funerals
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Recent Examples of insensate
The brain, like other internal organs, is insensate, its lack of sensory receptors attested by videos of virtuoso violinists who play on unfazed as neurosurgeons go to work inside their skulls.
—
Matthew Ponsford, WIRED, 19 Sep. 2024
But states have used midazolam alone — and at much higher doses — in executions since 2013, claiming the drug will render people insensate to pain before the administration of other lethal injection drugs.
—Lauren Gill, ProPublica, 29 Apr. 2023
Jerome Powell and his Federal Reserve colleagues are hardly insensate to the risk that their inflation-fighting actions might bring Mr. Trump back to power.
—Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, 14 June 2022
Realigning themselves with sophomoric virtues, the stars sell their souls in accommodation to the insensate new era.
—Armond White, National Review, 28 Oct. 2020
Matthew Ponsford, WIRED, 19 Sep. 2024
But states have used midazolam alone — and at much higher doses — in executions since 2013, claiming the drug will render people insensate to pain before the administration of other lethal injection drugs.
—Lauren Gill, ProPublica, 29 Apr. 2023
Jerome Powell and his Federal Reserve colleagues are hardly insensate to the risk that their inflation-fighting actions might bring Mr. Trump back to power.
—Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, 14 June 2022
Realigning themselves with sophomoric virtues, the stars sell their souls in accommodation to the insensate new era.
—Armond White, National Review, 28 Oct. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insensate
Adjective
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This disrupts unconscious bias in real-time.—
Carolina Guardiola Romo,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
-
The investigation revealed Samnath was left at the hospital unconscious in a wheelchair Television Jamaica (TVJ) previously reported.—
Samira Asma-Sadeque,
PEOPLE,
18 May 2026
Adjective
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When a ruthless despot steals a billion-dollar fortune, the team is sent to steal it back on what would be for anyone else a suicide mission.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
14 May 2026
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Assayas offers anecdotes, a feuilleton of tyranny in which the foibles of the mighty and the ruthless reveal the sentimental side of cruelty, the amusement value of ugly deeds, and the polite side of monstrous ideas.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 May 2026
Adjective
-
Both cameras have extremely sticky tracking systems that focus on the eyes of people, wildlife, pets, and insects, as well as inanimate subjects like trains, planes, automobiles, and motorbikes.—
Jim Fisher,
PC Magazine,
13 May 2026
-
But there are inanimate pets in the cemetery.—
Jennie Key,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Ron White, Joe DeRosa, and Tony’s number one favorite comic, Tony Hinchcliffe (played by Adam Ray), showed the crowd exactly what effortless and absolutely merciless veteran comedy looks like.—
Malina Saval,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
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Development in the Dotte 🪠 Fish or human feces often wash up in KCK homes during those merciless spring rains.—
Sofi Zeman,
Kansas City Star,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
One says, God can always see you with his unfeeling precision.—
Sandra Lim,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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As the actor tells Glamour, most were written according to stereotypes and portrayed as cold, unfeeling, aggressive, or robotic.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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These conditions often yield mezcals with a savory backbone and a dry, stony finish.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2026
-
In a vast stony tract of desert a three-hour drive south of Cairo, tucked between jagged black mountains and the glittering Gulf of Suez, a group of Chinese engineers is quietly rewiring Egypt’s energy strategy.—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The moves were senseless, short-sighted and emblematic of everything wrong with professional sports in this day and age.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
19 May 2026
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The ordeal was no longer a senseless drive to nowhere but a sensible one to nowhere.—
Weike Wang,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
Adjective
-
As Tiffany, Brittany Bradford can turn on a dime from hilarious (in her college open mic-night debut) to callous and cold.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
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Drenched in sweat from the heat, Pickford would burn through work gloves and callous his hands.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Insensate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insensate. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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