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as in unconscious
having lost consciousness if a choking person is insensible, you should lay them down on their back before performing the Heimlich maneuver

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as in insensate
lacking animate awareness or sensation even the canyon's insensible rocks seemed to mock the stranded climber's utter helplessness

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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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 insensible Also invited, for insensible reasons, is Neville’s first wife, Audrey (Ella Lily Hyland), blond to Kay’s brunette, for easy identification. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2025 The ‘real’ Camille, meanwhile, has become an insensible, comatose carcass, although no one seems to notice. Damon Wise, Deadline, 24 Jan. 2025 Foreman tumbled downward in a dizzy, slow-motion-like crash, full-weight, a helpless giant, insensible. Mikal Gilmore, Rolling Stone, 17 Jan. 2025 The ‘real’ Camille, meanwhile, has become an insensible, comatose carcass, although no one seems to notice. Damon Wise, Deadline, 24 Jan. 2025 Foreman tumbled downward in a dizzy, slow-motion-like crash, full-weight, a helpless giant, insensible. Mikal Gilmore, Rolling Stone, 17 Jan. 2025 Or lobbyists can sometimes intervene and gain insensible exemptions from bans. IEEE Spectrum, 10 Feb. 2024 But the Cylinder Sling by Building Block flirts with such attitude without becoming rude or insensible. Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2022 The novel positions him as insensible to agendas, hopelessly subject to the whims of the altruistic and the cruel. Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insensible
Adjective
  • Yet recent research has shown just how quickly initial impressions can form — and just how unconscious our judgments can be.
    Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
  • Alicia was unconscious after having just been strangled by Valter, while Lejla was trapped inside the chamber, bleeding from banging her head against the glass.
    Jordana Comiter, People.com, 17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Level up your LinkedIn by fixing these invisible barriers Your LinkedIn growth depends on mastering these fundamental elements that most people miss.
    Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025
  • The female moths deposit their almost invisible eggs in places where spider webs are likely to form, especially rotten logs, tree hollows and rock cavities.
    Elizabeth Weise, USA Today, 25 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Their dominance was complete and almost nonchalant.
    Michael Walker, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025
  • Sure, your cat may look rather nonchalant about it.
    Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • 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
Adjective
  • The comments in screen shots of the chat room were demeaning and vulgar – as were the texts from the anonymous messenger who had sent her the images.
    Yoonjung Seo and Mike Valerio, CNN Money, 25 Apr. 2025
  • Where once was the vulgar, now lies the Vulgate, a common relatable almost religious experience that all at Barclays seemed to feel.
    Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • This situation would be a comedy of errors if not for its ending in tragedy: Andy is ignorant of Sherry’s affections, Sherry has no notion of Crawford’s intentions, and Crawford could not care less about either of them.
    Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 25 Apr. 2025
  • Some sellers, who may only own a home for a few years, may be ignorant of its past.
    Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The emotional cost of mentally undoing and redoing past events might be imperceptible in the moment, but compounds considerably in the long run.
    Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025
  • There was very little, almost imperceptible cross-control.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The Retreat Linen Top and matching Mid-rise Shorts, both over 40 percent off, can be styled together for a polished resort outfit or worn separately with basics for casual, everyday wear.
    Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 20 Apr. 2025
  • If the weather promises to be nice, pull the picnic tables together for a casual potluck gathering full of everyone's favorite Easter food.
    Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 19 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Insensible.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insensible. Accessed 2 May. 2025.

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