desensitize

American  

[dee-sen-si-tahyz] / diˈsɛn sɪˌtaɪz /

especially British, desensitise

verb (used with object)

desensitized, desensitizing

1. to lessen the sensitiveness of.

2. to make indifferent, unaware, or the like, in feeling.

3. Photography.  to make less sensitive or wholly insensitive to light, as the emulsion on a film.

4. Printing.  to treat (the design on a lithographic plate) with an etch in order to increase the capacity to retain moisture, and to remove traces of grease.

5. Chemistry.  to reduce the sensitivity of (an explosive) to those stimuli capable of detonating it.

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desensitize British  

/ diːˈsɛnsɪˌtaɪz /

verb

1. to render insensitive or less sensitive

   the patient was desensitized to the allergen

   to desensitize photographic film

2. psychol to decrease the abnormal fear in (a person) of a situation or object, by exposing him to it either in reality or in his imagination

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Other Word Forms

• desensitization noun
• desensitizer noun

Etymology

Origin of desensitize

First recorded in 1900–05; de- + sensitize

Example Sentences

Anyeji says that the sender might be desensitized or numb to the disturbing content, which is also a sign of the sender’s traumatic distress, which they may unknowingly be passing along.

From Los Angeles Times

But Thompson’s life changed forever in 1999 when he filed his first gaming lawsuit, claiming that the perpetrator of the Heath High School shooting was desensitized by a collection of computer games.

From The Verge

But Golon said that standard is outmoded in an era where video games and other re-creations of violence have gradually desensitized viewers.

From Washington Post

For instance, Atkins had to be desensitized to sounds such as the screech of the dentist’s drill.

From Washington Post

“I had to take Benadryl before I went to sleep. For the right woman, I’d get allergy shots to desensitize myself.”

From Washington Post

Related Words

• deaden