1
as in inanimate
lacking animate awareness or sensation
refused to believe that the universe as we know it evolved from the random interactions of insentient particles of matter
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imperceptive
not having or showing a deep understanding of something
an insentient therapist who failed to see what the teenager's real problem was
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of insentient
This is partly because the loss of insentient machinery, no matter how expensive, is easier to stomach than the death of an aircrew.
—
Lauren Kahn, Foreign Affairs, 6 June 2023
But its shortcomings are essentially those of the novel: its single-track didacticism; its neat pitting of romantic idealists against macho, insentient normies; and the fact that a decisive plot twist can be spotted a mile off.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2023
Genes are insentient things and cannot be said to have any kind of purposeful selfish or unselfish behavior.
—Quanta Magazine, 14 Sep. 2017
Lauren Kahn, Foreign Affairs, 6 June 2023
But its shortcomings are essentially those of the novel: its single-track didacticism; its neat pitting of romantic idealists against macho, insentient normies; and the fact that a decisive plot twist can be spotted a mile off.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2023
Genes are insentient things and cannot be said to have any kind of purposeful selfish or unselfish behavior.
—Quanta Magazine, 14 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insentient
Adjective
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Still, what separates living, breathing beings from inanimate matter remains frustratingly set in my mind.—
Elizabeth Rush,
The Atlantic,
26 May 2025
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Even an inanimate sculpture representing a Black woman gets hit with stereotypical projections.—
Taryn Finley,
Refinery29,
14 May 2025
Adjective
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During his new stand-up special, Jamie tearfully recounts his medical emergency that left him being unconscious for 20 days and waking up in a wheelchair.—
Sharareh Drury,
People.com,
2 June 2025
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Authorities found the vehicle’s driver unconscious and not breathing, police said.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
28 May 2025
Adjective
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Camp, stupid, joyful—to both own and access—Labubu has taken over.—
Lara Johnson-Wheeler,
Vogue,
31 May 2025
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This is just stupid how successful this is, but that’s really underselling it.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
31 May 2025
Adjective
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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
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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
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He could not be seen, just as the little black boy was not seen, or was seen inaccurately, by the unperceptive and disdainful white boy.—
Louise Glück,
The New York Review of Books,
14 Jan. 2021
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Memory, conveyed by an unperceptive, mechanically flowing camera, seems disconnected from culture.—
Armond White,
National Review,
19 Nov. 2021
Adjective
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One of the lessons from Denver’s last two playoff runs should be that while Aaron Gordon is perfectly capable of handling those minutes at center, overextending him is unwise.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
30 May 2025
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In fact, without unwise government interference, that type of insurance would have evolved naturally through free market competition.—
John C. Goodman,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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Ratajkowski has been fighting the stereotype of the dumb model from the beginning of her career.—
Daniel Jackson,
Allure,
18 July 2017
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Ninety nine percent of all NFL players are explicitly not dumb.—
Andy Benoit,
The MMQB,
10 July 2017
Adjective
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Alas, during one night siege (silly enough to not scare the little ones, even as the entire village repeatedly goes up in flames), Hiccup aims his weapon at the shape of a Night Fury (no one, we’re told repeatedly, as ever really seen one), shoots, and … what!—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 June 2025
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Still, sometimes Forrest’s demands seemed nitpicky, silly even.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
8 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Insentient.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insentient. Accessed 13 Jun. 2025.
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