disinterested
unbiased by personal interest or advantage; not influenced by selfish motives: a disinterested decision by the referee.
not interested; indifferent.
Origin of disinterested
1synonym study For disinterested
confusables note For disinterested
Many object to the use of disinterested to mean “not interested, indifferent.” They insist that disinterested can mean only “impartial”: A disinterested observer is the best judge of behavior. However, both senses are well established in all varieties of English, and the sense intended is almost always clear from the context.
Other words for disinterested
Opposites for disinterested
Other words from disinterested
- dis·in·ter·est·ed·ly, adverb
- dis·in·ter·est·ed·ness, noun
- non·dis·in·ter·est·ed, adjective
Words that may be confused with disinterested
- disinterested , uninterested (see confusables note at the current entry)
Words Nearby disinterested
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use disinterested in a sentence
It’s nothing at all like a cage full of disinterested wolf pups.
Even raised by people, wolves don’t tune into you like your dog | Jaime Chambers | August 16, 2021 | Science News For StudentsMistakes include marketing to a new, disinterested demographic, while neglecting the brand’s core audience, overpricing the sandwich itself, some ad firm dram, and sweeping disinterest or disdain from franchisees.
The Arch Deluxe Was a Hell of a Burger. It Was Also McDonald’s Most Expensive Flop. | Jeremy Glass | July 23, 2021 | EaterThe dog pen is all licks, wiggles and eye contact, Salomons says, nothing at all like a cage full of disinterested wolf pups.
Dogs tune into people in ways even human-raised wolves don’t | Jaime Chambers | July 12, 2021 | Science NewsFor decades, he didn’t look forward to it because he was disinterested in honoring his dad.
Amid the pandemic, people crave connection. The ‘Internet’s Dad’ provides it. | Josh Paunil | June 17, 2021 | Washington PostWhen I stood in roughly the same spot as these two figures, I was thinking about some of the distinctly venal purposes to which we put our supposedly disinterested love of natural beauty.
Rekindling the wonder of Natural Bridge, once a testament to American grandeur | Philip Kennicott | June 17, 2021 | Washington Post
If our school system fails to teach how our country works, should we be surprised so many are disinterested?
Edge, one of the most inventive guitarists in rock history, comes off as disinterested.
U2 Generously Gives Us a Lousy Album, Sucks at the Corporate Teat | Hampton Stevens | September 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAdd to that a disinterested public that fails to turn out on Election Day, and citizens are getting the government they deserve.
Powerbroker Richard Ravitch Thinks New York Might Be Doomed | Josh Robin | April 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNeither he nor the Sanford Police Department were disinterested observers.
George Zimmerman Video Outrage: Where Are Injuries From Travyon Fight? | Jesse Singal | March 29, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTBut if one person's channel surfing and the other's disinterested, go right ahead and browse.
Never believe, however disinterested the love of a kept woman may be, that it will cost one nothing.
Camille (La Dame aux Camilias) | Alexandre Dumas, filsThe disinterested historians state ingenuously that Joanna was not guilty of this crime, although the others accuse her of it.
Frdric Mistral | Charles Alfred Downer"Then, for once, I've found a disinterested female in a coaxing mood," replied this modern Diogenes.
A Forest Hearth: A Romance of Indiana in the Thirties | Charles MajorHere they drew off, and their apparently disinterested hearer turned the page of his paper.
The Circular Study | Anna Katharine GreenThe Government cannot fail to reward with a bit of red ribbon so disinterested, so philanthropic a devotion.
The Nabob | Alphonse Daudet
British Dictionary definitions for disinterested
/ (dɪsˈɪntrɪstɪd, -tərɪs-) /
free from bias or partiality; objective
not interested
usage For disinterested
Derived forms of disinterested
- disinterestedly, adverb
- disinterestedness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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