INATTENTIVE Synonyms: 44 Similar and Opposite Words

inattentive

adjective

Definition of inattentive

as in heedless

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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 inattentive The trend closely matches data previously disclosed by Waymo, where self-driving vehicles are often hit by inattentive human drivers who misjudge or fail to anticipate the car’s cautious stopping behavior. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 16 May 2026 The bike path runs through the crosswalks, and disabled or slow-moving pedestrians, or those who are simply inattentive, will have to contend with riders zinging through at high speed. — Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 30 Apr. 2026 Production designer Nikhil Kovale and his team followed, and the background extras were coached in the inattentive, overlapping business of real hearings rather than the rapt pantomime standard to Bollywood courtroom scenes. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 Apr. 2026 In theory, shuffled cards with accompanying patter should boost the chances of volunteers losing sight of their target thanks to the psychological effect known as inattentive blindness. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 1 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for inattentive

Recent Examples of Synonyms for inattentive

Adjective

Babitz courted danger with heedless bravado and exemplary recklessness.

— Steve Wasserman, Los Angeles Times, 27 July 2026
Later, in Capital, Marx warns that soil depletion caused by the heedless exploitation of nature would threaten the physical foundation of society itself.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026

Definition of heedless

Adjective

Using troops to run, monitor, or tally elections would be legally indefensible absent an actual insurrection preventing people from voting.

— James Robenalt, Vanity Fair, 27 July 2026
The 49ers opened training camp over the weekend with Aiyuk absent but still technically a member of the team despite his public agitation to be released.

— Matt Barrows, New York Times, 27 July 2026

Definition of absent

Adjective

The report says there's been progress, but minorities, along with people who are poor and uneducated, still face higher death rates.

— Stephanie Stahl, CBS News, 24 June 2026
The hillbilly is portrayed as ignorant, uneducated, and unsophisticated; they are often depicted as being unkempt in appearance, perhaps noticeably dirty or walking around barefoot.

— Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 June 2026

Definition of uneducated

Adjective

As materials pass through hubs like Singapore, their origins often become increasingly abstracted.

— Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 19 Mar. 2026
Affecting meaningful change — or suffering from the lack of it — has become so abstracted for the rich and powerful that everything feels like entertainment to them.

— David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025

Definition of abstracted

Adjective

When Obama met Trump for a ritual pre-Inauguration visit to the Oval Office, he was struck by how unschooled and incurious the President-elect was.

— Peter Slevin, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Mata was also concerned about how the data failed to display how INA staff works with the lowest English proficiency students in the district — specifically those who are unschooled, and oftentimes refugees who have just entered the country.

— Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Apr. 2026

Definition of unschooled

Adjective

Still, with this inspirational true story, the streamer stands to reach a much wider public than Perry’s typical audience, reminding how much of American history remains untaught and largely untold.

— Peter Debruge, Variety, 6 Dec. 2024
Until recent years, the story of how this period affected California’s Indigenous peoples had largely gone untaught or underrecognized.

— Anne Wallentine, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 June 2024

Definition of untaught

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inattentive

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“Inattentive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inattentive. Accessed 30 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of inattentive

adjective

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