1
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
gave the homeless people on the street only an unfeeling glance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in numb
lacking in sensation or feeling
her heart was as cold and hard as the unfeeling marble statue in her garden
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in inanimate
lacking animate awareness or sensation
she spoke politely even to the unfeeling virtual assistant on her phone
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unfeeling
There’d be too much sympathy in watching this cookie get pulverized by unfeeling overlords.
—
Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2026
For example, 1975’s Welfare carefully documents the hoops that working people had to jump through to obtain welfare benefits at New York’s Waverly Welfare Center, representing the government as an intractable and unfeeling force.
—Vikram Murthi, The Atlantic, 22 Feb. 2026
Al Pacino has a small but memorable role as Hall’s father, presented as so greedy and unfeeling as to force us to think that maybe Kiritsis had a legitimate axe to grind.
—Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Jan. 2026
The adversarial shapes work on humans, too—wearing thimbles to emulate the cold unfeeling steel of a robot and using two fingers in a pinching grasp, the researchers were able to verify that the objects were hard to pick up.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for unfeeling
Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2026
For example, 1975’s Welfare carefully documents the hoops that working people had to jump through to obtain welfare benefits at New York’s Waverly Welfare Center, representing the government as an intractable and unfeeling force.
—Vikram Murthi, The Atlantic, 22 Feb. 2026
Al Pacino has a small but memorable role as Hall’s father, presented as so greedy and unfeeling as to force us to think that maybe Kiritsis had a legitimate axe to grind.
—Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Jan. 2026
The adversarial shapes work on humans, too—wearing thimbles to emulate the cold unfeeling steel of a robot and using two fingers in a pinching grasp, the researchers were able to verify that the objects were hard to pick up.
—IEEE Spectrum, 9 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for unfeeling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfeeling
Adjective
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Social media users on Twitter, now known as X, were absolutely ruthless with Beltrán at the time.—
Samantha Agate,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Director Nick Castle’s 1984 sci-fi adventure of a trailer park kid recruited to join an interstellar war against Xur and the ruthless Ko-Dan Armada is still a fantastic flick over 40 years after its original theatrical release.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The passengers, including me, sat stoically in the dark, tired and numb.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
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However numb fans are to the business of seemingly every level of sport, including third-grade kickball, seeing Schloss in a Texas uniform at Blue Bell Park is not going to go over well.—
Mac Engel
April 8,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
But there are inanimate pets in the cemetery.—
Jennie Key,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
31 Mar. 2026
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On the morning after the hurricane, these objects revert to their inanimate status quo—but the deviation has been recorded, as fiction.—
Hannah Gold,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This commentary was not from a wonkish TikToker nor a network pundit but from TMZ, the merciless purveyor of celebrity dirt, which published the images of Graham after a citizen vacationer noticed the senator flitting through the theme park and sent pictures.—
Paula Mejía,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
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But in the shadows, amid growing unease at the bloodthirsty actions of the realm’s merciless Mad King, dissenters from his inner circle anxiously advance a treasonous plot.—
Ryan Brennan
April 3,
Charlotte Observer,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
When Bill’s older brother Henry (Barry Ward) finds the pianist in numbed solitude in his dingy apartment, Bill has canceled all his upcoming gigs, saying Scotty cannot be replaced.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
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Ingber also notes the numbed response to these strikes from much of the American public, something that, in part, may come from the routine nature of these drone strikes as something that the nation has become desensitized to dropping bombs on enemies.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Known as the godfather of public relations, Bernays explained how the unconscious element of people in democratic societies could be manipulated.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Nearly two decades after Ratliff died, Peterson found his wife, Kathleen, unconscious at the bottom of the stairs.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
26 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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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
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Hikers can traverse the stony beds of Cliffy Creek and snap photos of the park's four iconic waterfalls.—
Joie Probst,
Midwest Living,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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He was advised to turn back along the same route and keep moving to avoid falling asleep through hypothermia.—
Gabrielle Rockson,
PEOPLE,
28 Apr. 2026
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In the official teaser, Lowen is slinking around the Crawford family house wearing a silk robe while Verity is fast asleep in bed.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unfeeling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfeeling. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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