callousness

[kal-uhs-nis]

noun

1. the quality of being insensitive, indifferent, or unsympathetic; hardness of heart.

   Cutting off the unemployed from their benefits is a sad blend of callousness—a complete lack of empathy for the unfortunate—and unsound economics.

2. a hardened or thickened condition of the skin or other tissue.

   Razors and shaving cause a callousness of the skin, which will encourage heavier hair growth and irritation.

Other Word Forms

• uncallousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of callousness¹

callous ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )

Example Sentences

Jobless inertia and financial strife breed a cruelty that isn’t dissimilar from the cold strike of an employer maintaining their bottom line, cutting 100 workers with the same callousness that they’d cut 1,000.

From Salon

It's a sign of the callousness of the criminals but also a sign of desperation as it appears Kido is not complying.

From BBC

If you weren’t turned off by the perception of callousness, the distraction of watching the level of charity pot dwindle while people thanked their mothers, spouses and co-workers was aggravating.

From Salon

It was the first operation Martino has witnessed and she said it underscores the disturbing callousness of how they are being conducted.

From Los Angeles Times

One cannot demonstrate this like a mathematical proof, but this carelessness, or callousness, about human life seems linked to fatalistic, even nihilistic attitudes.

From Salon

Related Words

• alienation 
• apathy 
• carelessness 
• disdain 
• disinterest 
• disregard 
• inattention 
• inertia 
• insensitivity www.thesaurus.com
• lack 
• negligence 
• nonchalance