insensate

American  

[in-sen-seyt, -sit] / ɪnˈsɛn seɪt, -sɪt /

adjective

1. not endowed with sensation; inanimate.

   insensate stone.

   Synonyms:

   inorganic, lifeless

2. without human feeling or sensitivity; cold; cruel; brutal.

   Synonyms:

   insensible

3. without sense, understanding, or judgment; foolish.

   Synonyms:

   dumb, witless, senseless, irrational, stupid

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insensate British  

/ -sɪt, ɪnˈsɛnseɪt /

adjective

1. lacking sensation or consciousness

2. insensitive; unfeeling

3. foolish; senseless

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Other Word Forms

• insensately adverb
• insensateness noun

Etymology

Origin of insensate

First recorded in 1510–20, insensate is from the Late Latin word insēnsātus irrational. See in- ³, sensate

Explanation

Insensate is a word to describe something without feelings or consciousness. Cars, computers, and stuffed animals are all insensate (though some of us occasionally project thoughts and personalities onto them). Insensate can also describe individuals who seem to lack the characteristically human emotions of kindness and generosity. A person who tears a stuffed animal out of the hands of a young child might be described as insensate. Another meaning of insensate is “lacking intelligence.” In short, insensate, in any sense of the word, is usually something that you don’t want to be.

Example Sentences

She is under general anaesthesia: unconscious, insensate and rendered completely still by a blend of drugs that induce deep sleep, block memory, blunt pain and temporarily paralyse her muscles.

From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025

Perkins gives the line a perfect comic spin, but our eyes are on Annie’s own insensate labor saver.

From New York Times • May 24, 2023

On Monday, the plaintiffs called Dr. Craig Stephens, an Oklahoma State University professor of pharmacology, who testified that midazolam is not an appropriate drug to render a person insensate to pain.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 28, 2022

The only explanation I have is that my interest was accelerated by a desire to please, an insensate understanding of pop culture and a pathological curiosity.

From Salon • Dec. 31, 2018

It would appear that, a day before the moment of demise, the subject was blind, and sufficiently fevered as to be insensate.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson