disinterested

[dis-in-tuh-res-tid, -tri-stid]

adjective

1. unbiased by personal interest or advantage; not influenced by selfish motives.

   a disinterested decision by the referee.

   Synonyms: dispassionate, unprejudiced, neutral, impartial
   Antonyms: biased, partial

2. not interested; indifferent.

disinterested

/ -tərɪs-, dɪsˈɪntrɪstɪd /

adjective

1. free from bias or partiality; objective

2. not interested

Usage

Many people consider that the use of disinterested to mean not interested is incorrect and that uninterested should be used

Confusables Note

Disinterested and uninterested share a confused and confusing history. Disinterested was originally used to mean “not interested, indifferent”; uninterested in its earliest use meant “impartial.” By various developmental twists, disinterested is now used in both senses. Uninterested is used mainly in the sense “not interested, indifferent.” It is occasionally used to mean “not having a personal or property interest.” 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 Word Forms

• disinterestedly adverb
• disinterestedness noun
• nondisinterested adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of disinterested¹

First recorded in 1605–15; dis- ¹ + interested

Synonym Study

See fair ¹.

Example Sentences

I hadn’t expected her to be enthusiastic, but I also hadn’t thought she’d seem so disinterested.

Read more on Literature

In ‘Critique of Judgment,’ Immanuel Kant argues that taste—the discerning appreciation of the beautiful and good—requires the critic to remain disinterested, unmoved by their own feelings of delight or aversion.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Stoodley agrees, saying that young fathers have historically been wrongfully "perceived as being feckless, disinterested and in some cases, a risk to their children".

Read more on BBC

Texas law requires a trustee to be a “disinterested party.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Albert recalled how there were training sessions when Asprilla was disinterested and "with us without being with us".

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• aloof 
• casual 
• dispassionate 
• impartial 
• indifferent 
• neutral 
• unbiased 
• unselfish