numbness

noun

as in apathy
a lack of emotion or emotional expressiveness the prisoner exhibited the numbness of someone who had spent more years behind bars than he could remember

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 numbness The 53-year-old senator experienced numbness in his arm Saturday afternoon while at his son’s hockey game, according to Allison Herwitt, the senator’s chief of staff in a statement Sunday. — Livi Stanford, Hartford Courant, 3 Nov. 2026 Other important symptoms of a stroke are a severe headache, confusion and numbness on one side of the body. — Diane Webber, NPR, 1 Nov. 2026 Murphy, 53, started feeling numbness in his arm while attending his son’s hockey game on Halloween. — Teo Armus, Washington Post, 1 Nov. 2026 The film’s listing in the Tokyo program is upfront about its aim to explore the complicated feelings that follow a loss, including numbness. — Kambole Campbell, Variety, 29 Oct. 2026 Signs such as numbness, vision changes, fatigue, and difficulty walking can occur in many other neurological disorders. — Bruce Bebo, STAT, 24 Oct. 2026 Symptoms include difficulty with movement and balance, dizziness, numbness and vision changes. — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 21 Oct. 2026 Applegate has previously described living with symptoms including numbness, an off-balance feeling, and a tingling sensation in the limbs. — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 Applegate, 54, was first diagnosed in 2021 after experiencing numbness in her feet. — Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 20 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for numbness
  1. apathy
  2. emptiness
  3. phlegm
  4. coldness
  5. insensibility
  6. detachment
Noun
  • And for a franchise built on passionate online debate from a vocal fandom, apathy is a death knell.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Their level of apathy and absenteeism will spell the difference between a good and a great night for Democrats.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of apathy
Noun
  • Carson’s account of desire helps explain why this creed leads to two kinds of emptiness.
    — Stacy Keltner, The Conversation, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Such stylish emptiness is daunting, and one doesn’t envy those who are now being encouraged to try it on for size.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of emptiness
Noun
  • Symptoms can include shortness of breath and coughing or blood in the phlegm.
    — Erika Edwards, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Any confusion, difficulty walking, shortness of breath or coughing up significant phlegm should prompt an immediate descent.
    — Elaine Reno, The Conversation, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of phlegm
Noun
  • The house was a metaphor for the coldness of a relationship that’s faded and atrophied.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 28 Sep. 2026
  • The danger occurs if that ruthlessness veers into institutional coldness.
    — James McNicholas, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of coldness
Noun
  • The famous Lord Chesterfield[5] counselled his son that he should never be seen to laugh; and that gravity with real or apparent insensibility is a universal characteristic of the savage.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 July 2026
Definition of insensibility
Noun
  • His household becomes a microcosm of a broader societal moral decay, fuelled by detachment, indifference, corruption, complacency and the pursuit of comfort.
    — Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Researchers found that these processes are also accelerating the glacier’s detachment from stabilizing ridges, leading to more rapid ice flow and deterioration.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of detachment

Browse Nearby Words

numbing
numbness
numbs
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Cite this Entry

“Numbness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/numbness. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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