insensate
[in-sen-seyt, -sit]
- not endowed with sensation; inanimate: insensate stone.
- without human feeling or sensitivity; cold; cruel; brutal.
- without sense, understanding, or judgment; foolish.
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Origin of insensate
Synonyms
See more synonyms for insensate on Thesaurus.com1. lifeless, inorganic. 2. insensible. 3. stupid, irrational, senseless, witless, dumb.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for insensate
Contemporary Examples
He was “overwhelmed by the feeling” that “the Suffolk expanses” had “shrunk once and for all to a single, blind, insensate spot.”
Historical Examples
It was insensate folly on his part, ridiculous from any point of view.
The Black BagLouis Joseph Vance
More than once he had hoped the insensate fury of the blizzard might abate.
Nan of Music MountainFrank H. Spearman
It was hardly more now, as the Lady plodded on, than an insensate log.
Nan of Music MountainFrank H. Spearman
Regret at their insensate rage is sure to succeed all such outbreaks.
Historical Tales, Vol. 6 (of 15)Charles Morris
Then an insensate wish to stab him to the heart made her turn her head and look at him.
BeyondJohn Galsworthy
insensate
- lacking sensation or consciousness
- insensitive; unfeeling
- foolish; senseless
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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
Word Origin and History for insensate
adj.
1510s, from Late Latin insensatus "irrational, foolish," from Latin in- "not" (see in- (1)) + sensatus "gifted with sense" (see sensate). Insensate means "not capable of feeling sensation," often "inanimate;" insensible means "lacking the power to feel with the senses," hence, often, "unconscious;" insensitive means "having little or no reaction to what is perceived by one's senses," often "tactless."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper