desensitize

[ dee-sen-si-tahyz ]

/ diˈsɛn sɪˌtaɪz /

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See synonyms for: desensitize / desensitized on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), de·sen·si·tized, de·sen·si·tiz·ing.

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

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

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.

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

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Also especially British, de·sen·si·tise .

Origin of desensitize

First recorded in 1900–05; de- + sensitize

OTHER WORDS FROM desensitize

de·sen·si·tiz·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use desensitize in a sentence

The memes of 2020 reflected an internet that has become desensitized to the burning house around it and the phrase “this is fine” is more of a plea than a resignation.
The Most Impactful Memes of 2020|Peter Allen Clark|January 21, 2021|Time
Experts also say the months-long pandemic created a weariness and potentially desensitized people to the serious of the threat, a psychological state often called “covid fatigue.”
Maryland’s coronavirus numbers are going up. Here’s what you need to know.|Erin Cox|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
We’ve become desensitized to positive tests in sports with young and healthy athletes, but this is a grim reminder that the disease is so dangerous, no matter the age of the person it hits.
Are Bad NFL Defenses Breaking Win Probability Models?|Sara Ziegler (sara.ziegler@fivethirtyeight.com)|October 26, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
For the broader public, it matters that we have become desensitized to the loss of some lives and value them less than others.
The Post-Brown and Garner Question: Who ‘Deserves’ to Die?|Goldie Taylor|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Nigerians have become desensitized to suffering, I was repeatedly told during my time in Lagos.
Boko Loco: A View From Nigeria|Lola Ogunnaike|May 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Perhaps they were wary of each other, or too desensitized to connect on any level.
For the Cleveland Kidnapping Victims, a Tragic Sisterhood|Christine Pelisek|May 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In the border region, “drug trafficking is such a normal activity that people are so desensitized to it,” he said.
At Mexican Border, Four in Five Drug Busts Involve American Citizens|Andrew Becker, G. W. Schulz, Tia Ghose|March 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But some do wonder if popular culture has desensitized people to the very real consequences of violence.
After Batman Shooting, Hollywood Looks Within|Lorenza Muñoz|July 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Her desensitized and asphalt palate thrills and throbs beneath the tricklings of Cordon Rouge.
Europe After 8:15|H. L. Mencken, George Jean Nathan and Willard Huntington Wright
His impressions are transferred to the desensitized plate of Mr. Hennessy's mind, where they can do no harm.
Mr. Dooley in Peace and in War|Finley Peter Dunne
Two years of war had cumulatively desensitized them to thrills.
My Second Year of the War|Frederick Palmer

British Dictionary definitions for desensitize

desensitize

desensitise

/ (diːˈsɛnsɪˌtaɪz) /

verb (tr)

to render insensitive or less sensitivethe patient was desensitized to the allergen; to desensitize photographic film

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

Derived forms of desensitize

desensitization or desensitisation, noundesensitizer or desensitiser, 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

desensitize

Origin of desensitize

OTHER WORDS FROM desensitize

Words related to desensitize

How to use desensitize in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for desensitize

desensitise

Derived forms of desensitize